In the extreme: 〜極まる／〜極まりない
な形容詞語幹 + 極まる／極まりない
な-adjective stem + 極まる／極まりない = “as X as can be”: the same meaning for both forms, a critical tone, written register.
In short
X 極まる and X 極まりない both mean “extremely X, as X as can be”. Despite the negative, 極まりない has the same meaning: “X without limit”. They attach to the stem of な-adjectives or Sino-Japanese nouns, most often negative ones (失礼, 危険, 不愉快, 迷惑, 退屈). Written register, critical or indignant tone.
- 彼の態度は失礼極まりない。かれのたいどはしつれいきわまりない。His attitude is unspeakably rude.
- 雨の夜に山道を飛ばすのは危険極まる。あめのよるにやまみちをとばすのはきけんきわまる。Speeding along a mountain road on a rainy night is extremely dangerous.
- 深夜の工事の騒音は迷惑極まりない。しんやのこうじのそうおんはめいわくきわまりない。Construction noise in the middle of the night is a nuisance in the extreme.
The basics
極まる means “to reach the limit, the extreme point”. X 極まる = “X reaching its extreme”. 極まりない, literally “with no end”, means “X without bounds”: both forms say the same thing, with 極まりない slightly more common.
The tone is critical: you're condemning a behaviour, a situation, a danger.
His attitude is unspeakably rude.
- noun
- adjective
- grammatical form
- 彼の態度は失礼極まりない。かれのたいどはしつれいきわまりない。His attitude is unspeakably rude.
- これは不公平極まる判決だ。これはふこうへいきわまるはんけつだ。This is a ruling that couldn't be more unfair.
How to form it
Attach 極まる or 極まりない directly to the stem of a な-adjective (without な). Both forms can describe a noun or end the sentence. It doesn't work with い-adjectives.
| Adjective | 極まる | 極まりない |
|---|---|---|
| 失礼（な） | 失礼極まる | 失礼極まりない |
| 危険（な） | 危険極まる | 危険極まりない |
| 不愉快（な） | 不愉快極まる | 不愉快極まりない |
| × 危ない（い） | × 危ない極まる | × 危ない極まりない |
- 危険極まりない運転で、事故を起こしかけた。きけんきわまりないうんてんで、じこをおこしかけた。Driving with extreme recklessness, he nearly caused an accident.
Mostly negative, and 感極まる
In the vast majority of cases, 極まる／極まりない goes with a negative word. One fixed exception: 感極まる, “to be overcome with emotion”, often as 感極まって泣く. You also meet, more rarely, positive uses in literary language (優美極まりない).
- 卒業式で、先生は感極まって言葉に詰まった。そつぎょうしきで、せんせいはかんきわまってことばにつまった。At the graduation ceremony, the teacher was so overcome with emotion that he couldn't speak.
極まりない, の極み, この上ない, 限りだ
の極み follows a noun with の (ぜいたくの極み) and also lends itself to praise. この上ない (“nothing above it”) is neutral and works for positive and negative alike. 限りだ expresses a personal feeling (うれしい限りだ). 極まりない is the most critical of the four.
| Form | Before | Tone |
|---|---|---|
| 〜極まる／極まりない | な-adj. stem | critical, indignant |
| 〜の極み | noun + の | extreme, often formal |
| 〜この上ない | adjective or noun | neutral, positive or negative |
| 〜限りだ | adjective of feeling | personal emotion |
- 皆様にお会いできて、うれしい限りです。みなさまにおあいできて、うれしいかぎりです。I couldn't be happier to meet you all.
Common mistakes
- Reading 極まりない as a negative: it means “to the utmost degree”, just like 極まる.
- Attaching it to an い-adjective: “危ない極まりない” is wrong; you say 危険極まりない.
- Keeping な: you say 失礼極まりない, not “失礼な極まりない”.
7 exercises on this point
Particles to choose, sentences to put back in order, translations: marked straight away, then reviewed at the right time. This JLPT N1 point is on the Hokuriku Line (Arts and crafts) of the Shinkansen.