jlpt-boi / JLPT N2 / Grammar / 〜さえ
〜さえ
「さえ」names hiragana as the minimal case — if even that can't be read, kanji is out of the question.
Tested at JLPT N2 — 1 practice question below.
Practice 〜さえ →〜さえ marks an extreme or minimal example to imply "if even this… then much less…," pairing naturally with はずがない. The logic: hiragana is the easiest script, so failing it rules out kanji. ほど marks degree for comparisons, まで suggests reaching a limit rather than a baseline, and こそ adds exclusive emphasis without the a fortiori reasoning.
ひらがな＿＿読めないのに、漢字が読めるはずがない。
Answer: さえ · Try this question →