English translation:
for
considering it’s
Structure:
Verb + にしては
Noun + にしては
Explanation:
[compared with the average]
Is にしては and にしても interchangeable at all in certain contexts?
I encountered this sentence giving both options but only one is correct
伊藤さんはバレエを１０年も習っていた（ ____）、あまりダンスが上手じゃなかった。
1 Like
Hey 
I don’t think that にしては and にしても are very interchangeable.
In this example, にしては is most likely the correct answer, since we don’t have any context and it seems typical にしては use.
AにしてはC “for”
Is used when something (expressed by C) is contrary (opposite) to our expectation (what is normally expected based on common knowledge, standard) (let’s say it is invisible B) from A (person/group/action/etc). In short, comparing thing with a standard of things of the same type.
Examples
夏にしては寒いです。
It is cold for summer.
You expect days to be, hot or at least hot in summer. However, contrary to expectation the day is actually cold.
チリペッパーにしては全然辛くないよ。
It is not spicy at all for chili pepper.
You expect chili to be super spicy. However, contrary to expectation it is actually not spicy at all.
安いノートパソコンにしてはゲームがしやすい。
Games are running well for a cheap laptop.
You expect a cheap laptop to suck when it comes to gaming. However, contrary to expectations it can actually run games well.
That is the only use and fits our example the most.
にしても has many uses.
にしても “also” (cannot be replaced with にしては)
最近、人々はお互いに会話すること自体が珍しいケースになった。
そのため対人関係も薄くなりそうだ。親子関係にしても、より悪くなりやすい。
Lately, it has become unusual for people to chat with one another.
Because of that, personal relations will likely weaken. parent-child relations also will get worse.
にしても, hypothetical, even if someone decides to do A, even if I recognize A being the case
より高いノートパソコンを買うにしても、ウィッチャ３を超解像でやれるだろうか。
Even if I (decide to) buy a more expensive notebook, I wonder if I can play Witcher 3 in ultra-resolution on it.
This use is a bit similar to にしては since it can also imply a deviation from a standard. But it is not being opposite to expectation. It is often going beyond what is normally expected.
彼は小学生にしてはとても背が高い。
He is tall for elementary school students. (expectation: being short)
彼は大学生であるにしてもとても背が高い。
It is true that he is a student, even so, he is REALLY tall. (expectation: being tall)
BUT a lot of Japanese don’t know or care about this difference, so don’t be surprised if you see にしては used in the second case and the like.
Though there are examples, where にしては does not fit at all like:
忙しいにしても、せめて母と連絡を取れたらいいのに。
It is true that she is busy, even so, she could have at least get in contact with mom…
にしても にしても regardless wheteher (this is one of the most common uses, you will see these examples the most, some might consider only this pattern (and “no matter” pattern) to be natural for にしても)(cannot be replaced with にしては)
食べるにしても、食べないにしても、料理代を払わないといけない。
Regardless of whether you eat or not, you still have to pay for the food.
どんなに・何・誰・いつ … にしても whatever, no matter what, no matter who, no matter when (this is one of the most common uses, you will see these the most, some might consider only this pattern (and “regardless whether” pattern) to be natural for にしても) (cannot be replaced with にしては)
どんなに注意深くこのゲームをしても、全ての秘密を見つけることはできない。
No matter how attentively you play this game, finding all secrets is impossible.
いくら大好物にしても、毎日食べると飽きる
No matter how much you like it, if you eat it every day, you will get tired.
どんなにお金がないにしても、人のお金を盗んではいけない
No matter how small the amount of money you have, you must not steal it from others.
I hope it helps,
cheers
5 Likes
Wow, another awesome explanation! I know these take time to write so thank you @mrnoone 
, hopefully this helps other BP members as well.
I think I’m seeing the divide a bit better now 
. I’m adding にしてもにしても now, it’s helpful as well given the “regardless” aspect. I think what tripped me up was the “Even though” could probably be used as a translation for both entries but it’s another case where English can cheat the nuances. I had similar trouble with a くせに or わりに example the other day with a similar instance.
I see としても vs. にしても bring in another dimension as well, that is another one to work on 
2 Likes
The 日本語の森 video link isn’t working. This seems to be the new link:
1 Like
I’m kinda confused by this example sentence:
（彼女は）政治家にしてはかなり若いから、少し不安ですね。
Considering (she) is a politician, (she) is quite young, so I am a bit anxious.
Why in the last part the doer is “I”, not “she”? It depends on the context, or maybe there is some rule I don’t know?
If there is a sentence like
Considering she is a politician, she is quite young, so she is a bit anxious
how it would look like in Japanese?
Because it’s being read from a given speakers’ viewpoint. You’re stating that because she’s young, that’s giving you anxiety.
政治家にしてはかなり若いとわかっりそうだから、少し不安な顔しているね。
Because you keep her as the subject. In this example you’re literally saying ‘she’s making a face that looks a bit anxious’, with phrasing it like this you keep her as the subject and not a contrast to what you said.
I also added わかっりそうだ to further emphasize that its just your observations on her. The more advance, the more you realize there are a million ways to say the same thing, so it’s really not limited to what I just presented here.
Just remember what the subject is at a given point in the sentence and the context will let you know very easily what is being talked about!
Hope this helps!