いくら

• Reading: いくら
• Romaji: ikura
• Formation: いくら + ですか / いくら + Verb ても + Result clause / いくらの + Noun

Meaning

A Wh-word that asks about the amount, price, or degree of something. As an interrogative, it means 'how much.' It also functions in concessive constructions meaning 'no matter how much.'

いくら serves dual functions in Japanese. As a straightforward interrogative, it asks about quantity, price, or extent: いくらですか (How much is it?). In its concessive use, いくら～ても means 'no matter how much one does something, the result remains unchanged.' This concessive pattern is common in both spoken and written Japanese and expresses frustration, resignation, or emphasis on an unchanging outcome despite effort. The interrogative use is among the most basic and essential question words, while the concessive use requires more advanced grammatical competence. いくら can also modify nouns with の (いくらの損害 — how much damage) or combine with か to create an indefinite expression (いくらか — some amount).

Examples

1. 海外への送金手数料はいくらかかるか、事前に確認しておいたほうがいい。 You should check in advance how much the overseas remittance fee will be.
2. いくら説明しても、彼は納得しようとしなかった。 No matter how much I explained, he refused to accept it.
3. この骨董品の市場価値はいくらなのか、専門家に鑑定を依頼した。 I asked an expert to appraise how much this antique is worth on the market.

Usage Guide

Context: spoken, written, everyday

Tone: interrogative

Do Say

• この地域の平均的な家賃はいくらぐらいですか。
• いくら努力しても成果が出ないときは、方針を見直す必要がある。
• 修繕にいくらの費用がかかるか、見積もりを出してください。
• いくら忙しくても、健康管理を怠ってはいけない。

Don't Say

• いくら人がいますか。(Using いくら to ask about countable people — use 何人 for counting people) → 何人いますか。
• いくら時間がかかる？(Using いくら for time duration — use どのくらい or どれくらい instead) → どのくらい時間がかかる？

Origin & History

いくら is composed of いく (how many/much), a native Japanese interrogative stem seen in いくつ (how many) and いかに (how), combined with the counter-like element ら. It has been in continuous use since Old Japanese as a quantity interrogative.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal