“nani yori mo・nani ni mo mashite”: More Than Anything / Above All [JLPT N1]

Content by NTJ Kuma · Nihongo to Japan editorial team · Updated July 27, 2026

Stressing that one thing outranks all others

「健康が何よりも大切だ」 — more important than anything, above all else

To declare flatly “this surpasses all, matters most,” 「健康が何よりも大切だ (health is more important than anything).」 「〜何よりも／〜何にもまして」 = more than anything (most) ～, above all else ～. This guide clarifies the two's division of labor (何よりも general, 何にもまして more written and stronger), the fixed greeting 「〜で何よりです,」 and warns against misapplying “more than anything” to comparing people or places (which need a different question word), finally separating it from the colloquial 「一番」 and 「とりわけ.」

Core: surpassing all others, most ～

「何よりも」「何にもまして」 both mean “more than anything ～, above all else, most ～” — stressing that something surpasses all others, holding top priority:

• 家族の笑顔が、私には何よりもの宝物だ (my family's smiles are, to me, a treasure above all else).
• 安全を、何にもまして優先しなければならない (safety must be prioritized above all else).
• 無事に帰ってきてくれて、何よりだ (that you came back safe is the best thing of all).

Feel: ①「何よりも」 = more than anything (most) ～ (general, spoken and written, commonest); ②「何にもまして」 = above all else ～ (more written, stronger, placing something over everything); ③「〜で何よりです／何よりだ」 = … is the best thing of all (a fixed greeting, rejoicing at someone's good fortune). In English: “more than anything ～, above all else, most ～, nothing better.”

Forms & attachment

Examples in use

• 子供たちの成長が、親にとっては何よりもの喜びだ。(The children's growth is, to a parent, a joy above all else.)
• 締め切りを守ることを、何にもまして重視している。(I value meeting deadlines above all else.)
• 試験に合格したとのこと、何よりです。おめでとう。(I hear you passed the exam — nothing could be better. Congratulations.)
• 彼女は何にもまして、努力の人だ。(She is, above all else, a person of effort.)
• お元気そうで何よりです。(You look well — that's the best thing of all.)

⚠️ Easy traps to avoid

① ⭐Don't misapply 「何よりも」 to comparing people, places, times — change the question word. This is Chinese speakers' most typical error. Chinese “比什麼都 (than anything),” “比誰都 (than anyone),” “比哪裡都 (than anywhere),” “比什麼時候都 (than any time)” all use the one structure “than … all,” so they're often uniformly rendered 「何よりも」; but Japanese must change the question word by what's compared:

• comparing things (than anything) → 何よりも: 健康が何よりも大切だ (health is more important than anything).
• comparing people (than anyone) → 誰よりも: 彼は誰よりも努力家だ (he works harder than anyone).
• comparing places (than anywhere) → どこよりも: この店はどこよりも安い (this shop is cheaper than anywhere).
• comparing time (than any time) → いつよりも: 今日はいつよりも寒い (today is colder than ever).

So “he works harder than anyone” needs 「誰よりも,」 not 「彼は何よりも努力家だ」 (that's wrong). Test: first see whether what's compared is a thing, person, place, or time, then pick the matching 「何／誰／どこ／いつ ＋ よりも.」 Only when comparing things, matters use 「何よりも.」

② The particle 「が／を」 can't be dropped. The 「が」 of 「健康が何よりも大切だ」 and the 「を」 of 「安全を何にもまして優先する」 can't be dropped. Some learners (especially those whose native tongue needs no subject particle) write 「健康　何よりも大切だ,」 which is unnatural Japanese. Correctly add it: subject with が (健康が何よりも大切), object with を (安全を何にもまして優先). Test: for the noun before 「何よりも／何にもまして,」 remember the due particle が／を.

③ 「何よりも」 general, 「何にもまして」 more written and stronger, 「〜で何よりです」 a greeting. Three 「何より」-related expressions, differing in use — don't mix. ①「何よりも」 = more than anything (most) ～ (general, spoken and written, commonest): 健康が何よりも大切 (health matters most). ②「何にもまして」 = above all else ～ (more written, stronger, placing something over everything, stressing degree): 何にもまして安全を優先する (prioritize safety above all). ③「〜で何よりです／何よりだ」 = … is the best thing of all (a fixed greeting, rejoicing at someone's good fortune): ご無事で何よりです (your safety is the best thing of all), お元気そうで何よりです (that you look well is the best). All three contain 「何より」 but differ in use: ① most general, ② stronger and more written, ③ a greeting. Test: for a plain “most ～” use 何よりも; for a written “above all else” use 何にもまして; to congratulate on someone's good fortune use 〜で何よりです.

🔄 Compare: 何よりも／何にもまして／一番／とりわけ

💡 The one thing to remember

「〜何よりも／〜何にもまして」 = more than anything (most) ～, above all else ～ — three points: ①⭐don't misapply “more than anything” to comparing people, places, times — for people use 「誰よりも,」 for places 「どこよりも,」 for time 「いつよりも,」 and only for things use 「何よりも」 (this is the commonest error); ② the particle が／を can't be dropped (健康が何よりも大切); ③ three 「何より」s divide the labor — 何よりも (general) ＜ 何にもまして (more written, stronger); plus the greeting 「〜で何よりです (nothing better).」 This set is a practical “superlative” — to solemnly stress “this surpasses all, matters most,” 「何よりも」 carries more weight than the colloquial 「一番」; to stress “over everything” even more, use 「何にもまして」; and to congratulate on someone's good fortune, 「ご無事で何よりです (your safety is the best thing of all)」 is a lovely everyday greeting.

❓ Common questions

Q: Is 「彼は何よりも努力家だ」 correct? I want to say “he works harder than anyone.”

No — “than anyone” needs 「誰よりも,」 not 「何よりも.」 This is Chinese speakers' most typical error, the key being to change the question word by what's compared. Chinese “比誰都努力 (works harder than anyone)”'s “比誰都” compares people, so Japanese must use 「誰よりも」: 彼は誰よりも努力家だ (he works harder than anyone), 彼女は誰よりも優しい (she's kinder than anyone). Whereas 「何よりも」's 「何」 compares things, matters (than anything), only for comparing “things”: 健康が何よりも大切だ (health is more important than anything — here comparing “all things”). So “he works harder than anyone” can't be 「彼は何よりも努力家だ」 (×, since it compares “people,” not “things”); it must be 「彼は誰よりも努力家だ」 (○). Likewise:

• comparing people “than anyone” → 誰よりも (彼は誰よりも速い).
• comparing places “than anywhere” → どこよりも (ここはどこよりも静かだ).
• comparing time “than any time” → いつよりも (今日はいつよりも忙しい).
• comparing things “than anything” → 何よりも (家族が何よりも大切だ).

Test trick: though Chinese is all “than … all,” Japanese first sees whether it compares a person, place, time, or thing, then picks 「誰／どこ／いつ／何 ＋ よりも.」 Remember “comparing people = 誰よりも,” and you won't mis-say “he ～ than anyone” again.

Q: What does 「何よりです」 mean? Is it the same 「何より」 as in 「何よりも大切」?

Written the same, but 「何よりです」 is an independent fixed greeting meaning “… is the best thing of all, that's wonderful.” It's used on learning someone's good news or good state, to rejoice for them: ご無事で何よりです (your being safe is the best thing of all), お元気そうで何よりです (that you look well is wonderful), 合格されたとのこと、何よりです (I hear you passed — nothing could be better). Its logic is “(this good thing) surpasses any other (news) = nothing better, most gladdening,” so 「何より」 here extends to the greeting “nothing better, most gratifying.” It's cognate with the 「何より」 of 「何よりも大切 (more important than anything)」 (both “surpassing any other”), but its use is fixed: 「〜で何よりです／何よりだ」 is a courteous phrase congratulating someone's good fortune, expressing relief, often after 「ご無事で／お元気そうで／〜とのこと.」 Test: on seeing sentence-final 「〜で何よりです／何よりだ,」 read it as the greeting “… is wonderful, nothing better”; while 「何よりも ＋ adjective／noun (more than anything ～)」 is the general superlative use. The two are cognate but one is a fixed greeting, the other a general “most ～.”

🖊️ Practice Questions (5)

Q1. 「健康が___大切だ。」(more important than anything)

(A) 何よりも　(B) 何でも　(C) 何とか　(D) 何しろ

Q2. 「ご無事で何よりです」の意味は?

(A) Nothing could be better than your being safe and sound

(B) How regrettable

(C) Not important

(D) Very dangerous

Q3. 「何にもまして優先する」の意味は?

(A) Prioritizing above all else

(B) Considered last

(C) Not prioritized

(D) Treated equally

Q4. 「何よりも」の意味は?

(A) More than anything (most)

(B) Nothing at all

(C) Occasionally

(D) Perhaps

Q5. 用法が自然なのは?

(A) 君の成功が何よりうれしい。　(B) 何よりもを食べる。

(C) 何よりもだ高い。　(D) 何よりも行かない(意味不明)。

Answer Explanations

1. (A) 何よりも ── More important than anything.

2. (A) ── Nothing could be better than being safe and sound.

3. (A) ── Prioritizing above all else.

4. (A) ── More than anything (most).

5. (A) ── 「君の成功が何よりうれしい」is correct.