Japanese Conversation · Level 2
86 words
Japanese word
何
Pronunciation
Romajinani
Meaning
- pronounwhat
Example
これは何ですか？ko re wa nan de su ka
What is this?
More examples
何が好きですか？nan ga su ki de su ka
What do you like?
教室には何がありますか。kyō shitsu ni wa nan ga a ri ma su ka
What is there in the classroom?
Core concept
Asks for the identity, nature, or content of something that has not been identified.
Common phrases
何時nan ji
what time
何人nan nin
how many people
何歳nan sai
how old
何曜日nan yō bi
what day of the week
何個nan ko
how many
Definition in Japanese
不明な人や物事について、その正体や内容を尋ねる語。fu mei na hito ya mono goto ni tsu i te so no shō tai ya nai yō o tazu ne ru go
Word origin
The word 何 (nani, "what") is written with the Chinese character 何, but its Japanese reading comes from the older native form なに (nani, "what").
Usage tips
- In spoken Japanese, 何 (nani, "what") is commonly pronounced なん (nan) before some sounds, as in 何ですか (nan desu ka).