～ともなると
when it comes to being
～ともなると attaches to a noun that names a high status, special role, or notable occasion and means “once you reach that level, things are naturally different”. It maps to English “when it comes to being...” or “once you're (something as important as)...”.
The second half of the sentence states what naturally follows from that elevated position like heavier responsibility or special treatment. It is close to ～となると (“when it comes to”), but ～ともなると adds the nuance that the noun represents a notably high or special level, not just any topic. The variant ～ともなれば is interchangeable.
Natural consequences of a high status or special occasion
Use ～ともなると to say that at that rank, age, or kind of occasion, a different state of affairs is only to be expected.
大企業の社長ともなると、スケジュールは分単位だ。
“When you're the president of a big company, your schedule runs by the minute.”
- 大企業（だいきぎょう）= big company, major corporation
- の = possessive marker
- 社長（しゃちょう）= company president
- ともなると = when it comes to being
- スケジュール = schedule
- は = topic marker
- 分単位（ふんたんい）= in units of minutes, by the minute
- だ = is (plain copula)
連休ともなると、この辺りは観光客でいっぱいになる。
“When a long holiday weekend comes around, this area fills up with tourists.”
- 連休（れんきゅう）= consecutive holidays, long weekend
- ともなると = when it comes to (a time like)
- この辺り（このあたり）= this area
- は = topic marker
- 観光客（かんこうきゃく）= tourists
- で = with (marks what fills the space)
- いっぱいになる = becomes full
How to form it
Noun + ともなると / Noun + ともなれば
- 社長（しゃちょう）= company president → 社長ともなると（しゃちょうともなると）= once you're the president
- 大学生（だいがくせい）= university student → 大学生ともなると（だいがくせいともなると）= once you're a university student
- 年末（ねんまつ）= year-end → 年末ともなると（ねんまつともなると）= when it gets to the end of the year
Key idea
～ともなると says: “at an ordinary level, maybe not, but at this level, naturally things change”. Pair a high-status noun with the different reality that comes with it.
Other N1 grammar
Updated .