modality N1 uncommon casualpolitewritten
たくても〜ない — even if one wants to ~,
たくても〜ない
Meaning
- even if one wants to ~, one can't — a desire blocked by an external impossibility
Key sentence
休みたくても、仕事が多すぎて休めない。
Even if I want to take a break, I have too much work to take one.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb たい → たくても, followed by the same verb in the potential negative | V-たくても + V-(ら)れない | 行きたくても行けない |
Examples
忘れたくても忘れられない思い出がある。
There are memories I can't forget even if I want to.
買いたくても、お金が足りなくて買えなかった。
Even though I wanted to buy it, I didn't have enough money, so I couldn't.
会いたくても、もう二度と会えない人だ。
She's someone I can never see again, however much I want to.
When you can't use it
- The second verb is normally the SAME verb in the potential-negative, and the thing blocking it is external or circumstantial — not a change of heart. It expresses thwarted desire, not unwillingness.
Easily confused with
〜（よう）にも〜ない Both = 'can't even though one wants to.' ようにも〜ない builds on the volitional (帰ろうにも帰れない) and stresses the thwarted attempt. たくても〜ない builds on たい and foregrounds the thwarted desire itself. 〜ても ても is the general 'even if.' たくても〜ない is the fixed 'even if one wants to, one can't' frame, where the wish and the impossibility are tied to one verb.
See たくても〜ない in real sentences
Jengo shows たくても〜ない 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.