Japanese word

なんだか

Pronunciation

Romajinandaka

Meaning

  • adverbsomehow

Example

なんだか変です。na n da ka hen de su

Somehow, I feel strange.

Illustration for なんだか (somehow)

More examples

その話を聞いて、なんだか安心しました。so no hanashi o ki i te na n da ka an shin shi ma shi ta

For some reason, I felt relieved after hearing that.

Core concept

なんだか (nandaka) signals an intuitive impression when the speaker cannot put the reason into words.

Common phrases

  • なんだか嬉しいna n da ka ure shi i

    somehow happy

  • なんだか安心するna n da ka an shin su ru

    feel somehow relieved

Similar words

なんとなくnantonaku: It expresses a vague feeling or impression without a clearly known reason.
なぜかnazeka: It indicates that something seems true for a reason the speaker cannot explain.

Definition in Japanese

理由をうまく説明できないが、何となくそうであると感じるさま。ri yū o u ma ku setsu mei de ki na i ga nan to na ku sō de a ru to kan ji ru sa ma

Word origin

The adverb なんだか (nandaka) comes from 何だか (nandaka): 何 (nan, "what") marks an unknown matter, だ (da) links it to a description, and か (ka) leaves it open.

Usage tips

  • Speakers often place なんだか (nandaka) before an adjective, as in なんだか眠い (nandaka nemui), to describe a feeling whose cause remains unclear.

Other meanings

  • for some reasonadverb

Word lists with this word