Of Course, Rest Matters Too は言うまでもなく・言うまでもない

言[い]うまでもない means “it goes without saying” or “needless to say.” There are two common shapes: a complete idea + のは言うまでもない states that the idea is obvious; a noun + は言うまでもなく adds that obvious example before mentioning another one.

With a verb or adjective clause, の nominalizes the idea before は言うまでもない. In conversation, 言うまでもないですが or 言うまでもありませんが can introduce a point the listener is expected to accept.

は言うまでもなく often works like “not to mention” or “of course …, and … too.” The first noun is treated as an obvious case, then the sentence adds something else that also matters. Use this carefully in conversation: saying something is “obvious” can sound dismissive if the listener may not agree.

Vocabulary