接続・範囲 · Connection & scope
まで
Until / as far as
Marks the end point of a range — until a time, as far as a place, or up to a degree.
When to use
- 五時まで = until five
- 駅まで送る = see someone off to the station
- 驚くまで大きい = so big as to surprise
How to use
- 1Attach まで after the endpoint noun.
- 2Often paired with から for from–to ranges.
- 3Can express surprising degree with verbs/adjectives.
Nuance & non-standard uses
Patterns that go beyond the textbook default — contrast, omission, register shifts, and mixed particles.
までに — deadline (by …)
まで marks the endpoint itself; までに marks "by that time/point" — completion before the limit. 五時まで働く (work until five) vs 五時までに終わる (finish by five).
来週の月曜までに返信してください。
Please reply by Monday next week.
駅まで走った。
Ran as far as the station — endpoint まで only.
までもない — not worth going as far as
Fixed pattern meaning "no need to go so far as to…" or "not to the extent of." Productive for softening criticism or refusal.
言うまでもないが、気をつけて。
It goes without saying, but be careful.
わざわざ来るまでもないよ。
You don't have to go out of your way to come.
Degree まで (驚くまで・信じられないまで)
まで after adjective or verb phrase can mean "to the extent that…" — rhetorical emphasis, not spatial limit.
泣きたいまで疲れた。
So tired I could cry — extent まで.
Examples
閉店まで待った。
Waited until closing.
東京まで行く。
Go as far as Tokyo.