Anna-ni ganbatta-no-ni, chūkan-tesuto-no tensū-ga warukatta-no. (Even after trying so hard, my mid-term exam results were bad.)

Situation 1: Junior high school student Takako comes home looking disappointed. Her mother asks why she looks so down.

母： どうしたの、そんなにがっかりして。

たか子： あんなにがんばったのに、中間テストの点数が悪かったの。

Haha: Dō shita-no, sonna-ni gakkari-shite.

Takako: Anna-ni ganbatta-no-ni, chūkan-tesuto-no tensū-ga warukatta-no.

Mother: What's up, Takako? You look depressed.

Takako: Even after I tried so hard, my mid-term exam results were bad.

Today we introduce proper usage of のに and ても/でも, which link two contrary clauses. Xのに、Y expresses that unexpected result Y happens after fact X. It is used when the speaker is surprised, critical, regretful or dissatisfied about a result. When the speaker does not have these feelings, Xけど/が、Y is appropriate, as in ネットで調(しら)べてみたけど/が、よくわからなかった (I looked it up on the net but didn't quite get it.) X is usually a present fact or something that has already happened, using a verb or i-adjective in plain form. When X is a na-adjective or a noun in non-past affirmative form, なのに is used. Examples: 彼(かれ)は元気(げんき)なのに、働(はたら)こうとしない (He won't work even though he's healthy). Intentional expressions such as requests (verb in te-form +ください) or wants (verb in pre-masu-form + たいです) cannot be Y.

Situation 2: Mr. Sere and his girlfriend, Yuri, are chatting about cars.

ゆり： 最近、ハイブリッド車が増えてきたみたいね。

セレ： うん。高くてもよく売れるんだって。環境のことを 考えているんだね。

Yuri: Saikin, haiburiddo-sha-ga fuete-kita mitai-ne.

Sere: Un. Takakute-mo yoku ureru-n-datte. Kankyō-no koto-o kangaete-iru-n-da-ne.

Yuri: It seems like the number of hybrid cars has been increasing recently.

Sere: Yeah. I read that they sell well even though they're expensive. People are thinking about the environment, I guess.

Xても/でも、Y means "though X, Y." Though similar to Xのに、Y, this structure describes facts rather more objectively and does not convey feelings, such as surprise or criticism, as strongly as Xのに、Y does. Xても/でも、Y can express a hypothetical matter or something that has not yet happened. Example: 雨(あめ)が降(ふ)っても毎日 (まいにち)犬(いぬ)の散歩(さんぽ)に行(い)く (I walk my dog every day, even if it rains). Also, Y can be intentional, as in: 一度(いちど) 決(き)めたら、つらくてもトレーニングを続(つづ)けなさい (Once you make up your mind, keep training even when it gets tough). X can be either te-form of a verb/i-adjective+も or na-adjective/noun+ でも, as in: あの山(やま)の雪(ゆき)は夏(なつ)でも消(き)えない (The snow on that mountain doesn't disappear, even in summer).

Bonus Dialogue: Continued from Situation 1.

たか子： 先生(せんせい)が試験(しけん)に出(で)るって言(い)ったところをちゃんと覚(おぼ)えたのに、そうじゃないところも出(で)たのよ。ひどいよ。

母： 先生に言わなくても、やらなきゃならないことはたくさんあるの。

たか子： そんなこと言っても、限界(げんかい)があるよ。あれもこれも勉強(べんきょう)するなんて、無理(むり)。

母： コツがあるんだから、どうしたらいいか考(かんが)えなさい。

たか子： あの先生の試験は、いつもむずかしいのよ。あ、でも、転校生(てんこうせい)なのに、最高点(さいこうてん)を 取(と)った子(こ)がいるの。

母： へえ、すごいね。じゃ、その子に勉強のやり方(かた)を教(おし)えてもらったら？

たか子： でも、あとで聞(き)いたら、前(まえ)の学校(がっこう)でもう習(なら)ったところなんだって。

母： そうなの。やっぱりふだんからまじめにやらなくちゃね。

Takako: I memorized what our teacher told us the exam would cover, but there were questions she didn't mention. She's terrible.

Mother: You have to do lots of things even though your teacher doesn't tell you to do them.

Takako: You say that, but I have my limits. It's impossible to do everything.

Mother: There's a knack to studying, so you have to think about what you should do.

Takako: That teacher's exams are always difficult. But one girl gots the best marks even though she's new.

Mother: Oh, that's great. Then why don't you ask her how she studies?

Takako: I asked her afterward, and she told me that she'd learned it all before at her previous school.

Mother: Oh, right? So, you have to study earnestly after all.