particle N3 common casualpolitewritten
さえ — even
さえ
Meaning
- even ~ — cites one extreme or unexpected case to imply that all the easier cases hold too
Key sentence
そんなことは子どもさえ知っている。
Even a child knows something like that.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun (replaces or stacks after が/を; can follow other particles: にさえ・からさえ) | N (+ particle) + さえ | 名前さえ / 君にさえ |
Examples
忙しくて、昼ご飯を食べる時間さえない。
I'm so busy I don't even have time for lunch.
彼は自分の名前さえ漢字で書けない。
He can't even write his own name in kanji.
Easily confused with
も Both can mean 'even.' も is the plain 'also / even'; さえ is stronger — it singles out the most extreme or surprising case to imply everything lesser follows. でさえ でさえ is さえ carried by で, favoured when the 'even' item is a noun acting as the subject (専門家でさえ rather than 専門家さえ). 〜さえ〜ば With a conditional, さえ flips to 'if only': さえ〜ば names the one sufficient condition for a result (お金さえあれば).
See さえ in real sentences
Jengo shows さえ the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar, A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar.