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I've noticed a grammar pattern recently: 「Ｖ方{ほう}もＶ方{ほう}だ」. From what I can tell, it always repeats the same verb twice, and it seems like ほう is often written in kana:

行くほうも行くほうだ

And if it's a する verb, usually only する repeats:

質問するほうもするほうです

But I can't find it in any of my reference materials—the dictionaries on my EX-WORD, the Makino et al. grammar dictionaries, or in Martin. I can find lots of examples online, but my poor brain just can't make sense of them:

作るほうも作るほうだが、
売るほうも売るほうだ。加えて、
買うほうもまた買うほうだと思っていた。
そんなときに全く偶然に入ったお店がこの店だった。

(from a blog post found on Google)

I guess ほう is 方, but I'm not sure how to interpret it or why it repeats. What does Ｖ方{ほう}もV方{ほう}だ mean?

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  • I could have sworn I came across this pattern in my N1 textbooks, but I can't locate it now, in either my book or on the web. Which raises an interesting side question... what is the best practise for looking up grammar forms when one comes across a grammar form one isn't familiar with? Google will most likely retrieve examples, not grammar dictionaries, so that's not a great route. There are plenty of good vocabulary dictionaries, but I can't think of a go-to online source for grammar reference.
    – Questioner
    Commented May 14, 2014 at 4:24
  • ほう contrasts two subjects, and turns the verb before it to a noun (which refers to the agent of the action here.) A mo A means A is not good, either.
    – Yang Muye
    Commented May 14, 2014 at 4:34

1 Answer 1

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"AするほうもAするほうだ" basically means "Those who do A are also to blame", implying there are other people who are also to blame.

質問するほうもするほうです

= The person who asked that question is also to blame (although the person who was asked is not good, either.)

作るほうも作るほうだが、売るほうも売るほうだ。加えて、買うほうもまた買うほうだ

= I don't like those who make such things, and those who sell them. And even those who buy them.

Other examples:

  • 詐欺は犯罪だが、騙される方も騙される方だ。
  • 彼の命令は間違っていたが、黙って従った方も従った方だ。
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