JLPT N2 grammar

〜かと言えばmeaning and usage

Meaning

Although A is expected, B results.

How to form it

  • verb (plain form)/い-adjectiveかと言えば
  • noun/な-adjective (stem)かと言えば
  • なぜ/どうしてかと言えば

How it is used

Raises a conclusion someone might draw (A) and then rejects it: 'if you ask whether A, not really'. Often followed by 「そうではない」 or 「必ずしも〜ない」. 「なぜかと言えば」 introduces a reason; 「かと言うと」 works the same way.

Examples

  1. 彼女は親しみやすいかと言えばそうではないが、親切です。

    Is she easy to get along with? Not really, but she is kind.

  2. 料理が好きかと言えば、実はそうでもない。

    Do I like cooking? Actually, not really.

  3. 日本に住めば日本語が上手になるかと言えば、必ずしもそうではない。

    Does living in Japan make your Japanese good? Not necessarily.

About the example 1. If you ask whether A, B is the answer (often contrary to the expectation that A).