ふたたび: 'Again / Once More' (Meaning + Examples)
A weighty "again," not a casual one
ふたたび marks that an event is happening a second time (or after a gap), and the tone is usually formal or dramatic — reunions, comebacks, and turning points, not small everyday repeats like "say that again."
いったん着地した怪物は、瞬間ふたたび跳躍してやったんの頭上にいた。
いったん ちゃくちした かいぶつは、しゅんかん ふたたび ちょうやくして やったんの ずじょうに いた。
The moment it landed, the monster leapt once more and was suddenly above Yattan's head.
Dramatic, narrative use of ふたたび.
十年後、モチとやったんはふたたび出会った。
じゅうねんご、モチと やったんは ふたたび であった。
Ten years later, Mochi and Yattan met again.
A meaningful reunion, not a trivial repeat.
彼はふたたび優勝を目指している。
かれは ふたたび ゆうしょうを めざしている。
He is aiming for the championship once more.
Attaching to a verb
ふたたび is a plain adverb — it sits right before the verb it modifies, with no particle or conjugation needed.
| Position | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Before a verb | ふたたび + 動詞 | ふたたび挑戦する (challenge again) |
| In narration/headlines | ふたたび、〜 | ふたたび、平和が訪れた |
長い戦いの後、この国にふたたび平和が訪れた。
ながい たたかいの あと、この くにに ふたたび へいわが おとずれた。
After a long war, peace came once more to this country.
Don't confuse with また or もう一度
また is the everyday, neutral word for "again" — また来てね ("come again"), また今度 ("some other time"). もう一度 specifically means "one more time," emphasizing the count. ふたたび is reserved for formal, written, or dramatic contexts; using it in casual chat (「ふたたび貸して」for "lend it to me again") sounds oddly stiff, like a narrator interrupting a conversation.
The short version
- ふたたび = "again" / "once more" — formal and often emotionally or narratively significant.
- Attaches to: nothing grammatically — a plain adverb placed directly before the verb.
- Nuance/register: literary, written-style; heavier than casual repetition.
- Don't confuse with: また (neutral, everyday "again") or もう一度 ("one more time").
Practice it
Choose ふたたび where the sentence needs a formal, weighty 'again.'
＿＿＿に入れるのに最もよいものを選びなさい。
いったん着地した怪物は、瞬間＿＿＿跳躍して私の頭上にいた。
Where ふたたび fits
Shaky on this? Get these solid first
- Past Tense · N5 — The plain past た-form means 'did.' It follows the same sound changes as the て-form (just て→た, で→だ): 食べた, 行った, 飲んだ. Learn it by verb group.
More N2 grammar to explore
Keep going with related patterns at the same level:
- 〜反面 — 〜反面 contrasts two aspects of the same subject, meaning 'while' or 'on the other hand' — 給料は高い反面、忙しい ('the pay is good, but on the other hand it's busy'). Unlike が, both sides describe the same thing.
- 果たして — 果たして is an adverb with two uses: with a plain statement it means 'sure enough, as expected'; paired with か/かどうか it means 'I wonder if it will really...' — questioning whether something will truly happen.
- いわゆる — いわゆる means 'so-called' or 'what you might call' — it flags that the noun right after it is a commonly known label, sometimes with a hint of distance from the speaker's own judgment. It never conjugates and always sits directly before a noun (phrase).
- いよいよ — いよいよ is an adverb meaning 'at last / finally' when an anticipated moment arrives, or 'more and more / increasingly' when something intensifies. Comes right before the verb or clause it modifies and never conjugates.
- 〜かのよう — 〜かのよう means 'as if' or 'as though' — describing something that looks, sounds, or behaves like something it isn't, often paired with まるで for emphasis. Attaches after the plain form of a verb or adjective; literary/formal in tone.
- 〜からすると — 〜からすると means 'judging from / based on' — you draw a conclusion or impression from a stated piece of evidence or standpoint. Attaches after a noun; the main clause is usually a guess (〜だろう/〜ようだ), not a stated fact.