Translation guide
Expresses doing something with maximum effort, intensity, or without holding back. Covers full-scale efforts, exhaustive attempts, and giving one's all.
Describes an action done with full force, energy, or commitment, often in a competitive or determined context.
Means 'serious' or 'in earnest'. Used when someone stops holding back and gets serious, often in competition or personal effort.
本気で勝負しよう。
Let's have an all-out match.
彼は本気で勉強し始めた。
He started studying all-out.
Literally 'certain death', meaning desperate or frantic effort. Conveys an all-out struggle, often with a sense of urgency.
必死で逃げた。
I ran away all-out.
Means 'mobilizing all one's strength/resources'. Used for large-scale, organized efforts, such as by a company or team.
会社は総力を挙げて新製品を開発した。
The company developed the new product all-out.
Refers to an all-out military attack, war, or a comprehensive campaign where no resources are held back.
Means 'all fronts' or 'full-scale'. Used for wars, attacks, or conflicts that are total and unrestricted.
全面戦争が勃発した。
An all-out war broke out.
全面攻撃を開始した。
They launched an all-out attack.
Means 'total strength' or 'all-out effort'. Often used in compound nouns like 総力戦 (all-out war).
Expresses putting all one's energy, heart, or soul into an action, often in sports, arts, or personal challenges.
Means 'with all one's might' or 'to the best of one's ability'. Common in everyday speech for personal best efforts.
精一杯頑張ります。
I'll do my all-out best.
精一杯の声で叫んだ。
I shouted with all my might.
Literally 'with whole body and whole spirit'. A dramatic, emphatic way to say 'all-out', often used in speeches or writing.
全身全霊を込めて歌った。
I sang with all my heart and soul.
全力 is neutral and common for physical/mental effort. 本気 implies seriousness and a shift from casual to committed. 必死 has a desperate, life-or-death nuance.
There is no single Japanese word that covers all uses of 'all-out'. Choose based on context: effort (全力), seriousness (本気), scale (全面), or desperation (必死).
これは総力戦だ。
This is an all-out war.
Means 'thorough' or 'exhaustive'. Can describe an all-out investigation, reform, or destruction.
徹底的な調査を行った。
We conducted an all-out investigation.