まるで

ま

る

で

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 2,000

Meanings

1

adverb

as if; just like; exactly like

usually written using kana alone

Most often used with ようだ, ように, or みたいだ to make a vivid comparison: something seems just as if it were something else.

外そとはまるで真ま冬

ふゆ

の

よう

に

寒さむ

い

。

Outside it is cold as if it were the middle of winter.

彼かの女じょの歌うた声ごえはまるでプロみたいだ。

Her singing voice is just like a professional's.

2

adverb

not at all; not in the slightest; not a bit

usually written using kana alone

Used with a negative predicate to strongly deny degree or possibility, as in まるで分からない or まるで役に立たない.

彼かれの説せつ明めいはまるで分わからなかった。
I could not understand his explanation at all.
この道どう具ぐは古ふるすぎて、まるで役やくに立たたない。
This tool is too old and is not useful at all.

3

adverb

completely; entirely; quite

usually written using kana alone

Emphasizes that a state or change is total or striking. Common with words such as 違う, 変わる, 別, and 正反対.

二人ふたりの性せい格かくはまるで正せい反はん対たいだ。
Their personalities are completely opposite.
町まちの様よう子すは十じゅう年ねん前まえとはまるで変かわってしまった。
The town looks entirely different from ten years ago.

Usage patterns

まるで〈物もの〉のようだas if it were ~; just like ~
彼かれはまるで子こ供どものようだ。
He is just like a child.
まるで〈動どう詞し〉ないnot at all; not in the slightest (with a negative verb)
彼かれの説せつ明めいはまるで分わからない。
I don't understand his explanation at all.
〈物もの〉がまるで違ちがうis completely different from ~
二ふたつの案あんはまるで違ちがう。
The two proposals are completely different.
まるで〈物もの〉みたいだlooks exactly like ~ (casual)
この花はなはまるで本ほん物ものみたいだ。
This flower looks just like a real one.

Grammar

まるで～ようだJust like / as ifN3

Kanji

丸round, full (month), perfection

Related words

全まったくN3
まったく is a broad intensifier for 'completely' or 'not at all', while まるで leans toward vivid comparisons (as if/just like) as well as total negation.
全ぜん然ぜんN5sense 2
全然 is used mainly with negatives for 'not at all' (and casually with positives), whereas まるで also covers the 'as if/just like' comparison sense that 全然 lacks.
あたかもN2
まるで is the common, everyday word for 'as if,' while あたかも is more literary and emphatic and typically appears in formal or written Japanese.
さもN1
まるで sets up a simile meaning 'as if/completely', whereas さも stresses that a situation truly seems real rather than comparing it to something else.
ちょうどN4
まるで stresses a vivid, almost exaggerated resemblance before ように/みたいに, while ちょうど conveys a milder, matter-of-fact 'just like' comparison.

Don't confuse with

まるっきりN1sense 3
まるっきり sounds and looks similar to まるで and means much the same 'completely/not at all', but it is a more colloquial variant that cannot be used before ようだ/みたいだ comparisons the way まるで can.

Written forms

まるでUsage100%
Standard practical spelling; usually written in kana.
丸まるでUsage<1%
rarely-used kanji form
Attested kanji spelling, but marked as rarely used; use まるで in ordinary writing.

Etymology

The rare kanji spelling 丸で links the word to 丸, associated with wholeness or completeness, plus で. In modern Japanese it functions as an adverb and is normally written in kana.