Breakdown of sakana ha takakute mo oisii desu.
はha
topic particle
ですdesu
to be
高いtakai
expensive
魚sakana
fish
おいしいoisii
delicious
〜くて も〜kute mo
conditional form (even if)
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have hundreds of Japanese lessons and thousands of exercises.
Questions & Answers about sakana ha takakute mo oisii desu.
Why is 魚 marked with は instead of が here?
The particle は marks the topic of the sentence (“as for fish”), setting 魚 as the thing we’re talking about in general. If you used が, it would emphasize 魚 as the new or specific subject, which isn’t the focus here.
What does 高くても mean?
高くても is the conditional form of the i-adjective 高い (“expensive”). It literally means “even if (it’s) expensive.” The sentence says: “Even if fish is expensive, it’s delicious.”
How do you form 高くても from 高い?
For i-adjectives, the pattern is:
- Drop the final い from 高い → 高
- Add くて → 高くて
- Then add も → 高くても
What’s the difference between 高くて and 高くても?
- 高くて is just the て-form, used to connect ideas (“expensive and…”).
- 高くても (= て
- も) expresses “even if”, showing a condition or contrast.
Why isn’t there a word for “but” in the Japanese sentence?
The conditional ても already carries a contrastive sense (“even if…still…”), so you don’t need an explicit “but.” It’s built into the grammar:
• “Even if it’s expensive, it’s delicious.”
Could I say 魚は高いけどおいしいです instead?
Yes. けど (or けれど) means “but,” so:
• 魚は高いけどおいしいです
• “Fish is expensive, but it’s delicious.”
The nuance differs slightly:
- 高くても emphasizes the concession (“even under that condition”),
- けど simply links two contrasting statements.
Why is おいしい followed by です?
です is the polite ending for adjectives (copula). In casual speech you can drop です:
• 魚は高くてもおいしい (informal)
Can I replace ても with も and write 魚は高くもおいしいです?
No. も after an adjective without て doesn’t form the “even if” meaning. You need 高くても (て + も) to express that conditional sense.