N3 Emphasis, Limitation, and Addition

~はもちろん〜も: meaning, usage and examples

~はもちろん〜も means: ...of course, but also...

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

Examples

1. 私わたしは自転車じてんしゃはもちろん、バイクにも乗のれる。

   I can ride a motorbike, to say nothing of a bicycle.

2. 彼かれは、漢字かんじはもちろん、ひらがなも読よめません。

   He can't read hiragana, let alone kanji.

3. この公園こうえんは週末しゅうまつはもちろん、平日へいじつも人ひとが多おおいです。

   This park is crowded on weekdays, not to mention weekends.

4. 木村きむらさんはピアノはもちろん、ギターもひけます。

   Mr. Kimura can play the piano, of course, and the guitar too.

When to use it

Means 'not to mention X, Y too' or 'X of course, and also Y'. The first item is the obvious case; the second is less obvious, so it adds weight: 漢字かんじはもちろん、ひらがなも読よめない 'can't read hiragana, let alone kanji'. It works for positive and negative sentences.

Nuance

Natural in both speech and writing; a written form is はもとより. The first item should be the one everyone expects. In negative sentences it often shows that even the easy thing is not possible.

Compare

Compare ばかりでなく / だけでなく: these simply add a second point. はもちろん says the first point is so obvious it barely needs saying. Compare さえ (even): ひらがなさえ読よめない focuses on one extreme example without listing a second.

Tip: Put the most obvious item first. 日本語にほんごはもちろん、英語えいごも話はなせる fits a Japanese person; the reverse sounds strange.