よしんば

よ

し

ん

ば

Freq.FrequencyTop 100,000

Meanings

adverb

even if; even though; supposing that

usually written using kana alone

Hypothetical concessive adverb: 'even if it were the case that...'. Often used with ～ても or ～たとしても to emphasize that the outcome would be the same regardless of the condition.

よしんば彼かれが来きても、私わたしは会あわない。
Even if he were to come, I wouldn't see him.
よしんばそれが本ほん当とうだとしても、今いまさらどうにもならない。
Even supposing that's true, there's nothing we can do about it now.

See all 3 example sentences ›

Kanji

縦vertical, length, height

Related words

たとえ
たとえ is more common and neutral for 'even if'; よしんば is slightly more literary and emphasizes a hypothetical concession.
もし
もし is a simple 'if', while よしんば adds the nuance of 'even if' or 'granting that'.

Written forms

よしんばUsage100%
Usually written in kana; the kanji forms 縦しんば and 縦んば are rare.
縦よしんば
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; learners will almost always encounter the kana spelling.
縦よしんば
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; learners will almost always encounter the kana spelling.

Etymology

The exact derivation is uncertain; it may be a contraction of an older concessive expression. The kanji 縦 is used for its meaning of 'even if' or 'supposing', but the word is now almost always written in kana.