N1 Emotion and Feeling

~限かぎりだ: meaning, usage and examples

~限かぎりだ means: I feel extremely... / to be very...

Updated 9 November 2026 · By the My Senpai team · Spotted a mistake? Tell us

Examples

1. 友人ゆうじんが無事ぶじに退院たいいんできたと聞きいて、嬉うれしい限かぎりだ。

   I'm so happy to hear my friend was safely discharged from the hospital.

2. あんなに尊敬そんけいしていた人ひとに裏切うらぎられて、悲かなしい限かぎりです。

   I feel incredibly sad to have been betrayed by someone I respected so much.

3. 新あたらしい職場しょくばには知しり合あいが一人ひとりもおらず、心細こころぼそい限かぎりだ。

   I don't know a single person at my new workplace, and I feel very uneasy.

4. 若わかい人ひとたちが町まちの祭まつりを盛もり上あげてくれて、頼たのもしい限かぎりです。

   It is very encouraging to see young people bringing the town festival to life.

When to use it

Expresses the speaker's own strong feeling: "I feel so ...", "nothing could be more ...". Used with emotion adjectives: 嬉うれしい, 悲かなしい, 心細こころぼそい, 頼たのもしい, うらやましい, 残念ざんねんな. Example: 無事ぶじだと聞きいて嬉うれしい限かぎりだ, I am so glad to hear they are safe. It often follows a reason clause in the て-form.

Nuance

Formal or written, common in speeches, letters and comments. Only for the speaker's own present feelings, not other people's. It does not join verbs or ordinary description adjectives (高たかい限かぎりだ is wrong).

Compare

てたまらない is the conversational version: 嬉うれしくてたまらない. の極きわみだ joins nouns for an extreme: 光栄こうえいの極きわみだ. の至いたりだ is fixed politeness: 光栄こうえいの至いたりです. 限かぎりだ sits between them: formal, but it joins plain adjectives and speaks only for the speaker.

Tip: Test it: can you say "I feel ___"? 嬉うれしい, 心細こころぼそい, 頼たのもしい yes; 大おおきい, 難むずかしい no.