Question words

1. WHAT (何) - You use either なに or なん depending on if you are saying it in a sentence or by itself. Before the particles がを and も,  we use nani 何  [ なに ]. Before の, で and です, 何 [ なん ] is used. Before か and に, both can be used interchangeably.

What is it = nan desu ka (何ですか)

What is this = kore wa nan desu ka (これは何ですか)

What do you prefer = nani ga ii desu ka (何がいいですか)


2. WHY (なぜ) - There are three ways to say why in Japanese depending on how formal the situation is.

なぜ is the most polite way to say why in Japanese. どうして is less formal than なぜ,  it is often used in casual conversations. なんで  is the least formal way of asking why. なんで and どうして can also be used in context to mean how.

Why is it = naze desu ka (なぜですか)

Why is it not good = doushite dame desu ka (どうしてだめですか)


3. WHEN (いつ)

Until when is it = itsu made desu ka (いつまでですか)

When do you work = itsu hatarakimasu ka (いつ働きますか)

When are you coming = itsu kimasu ka (いつ来ますか)


4. HOW (どのように) - どのように is one way of saying how in Japanese that you will hear often in conversation. You will also see どう and どうした. Other words can be:

なんで "how"
いかが - used to propose something, like "how about X?"
いくら - "how much" for example how much it cost?
いくつ - "how many"
どのぐらい - "how long it will take"

How do you do it = dou shimasu ka (どうしますか)

How did this happen = doushita n desu ka (どうしたんですか)


5. WHERE (どこ) - どこ is the Japanese word for where. Sometimes when どこ is used with the particle の the meaning changes to どの "which". どこに means "where to", どこで means "where at", どんな means "what kind of".

Where should we go = doko e ikimashou ka (どこへ行きましょうか)

Which store is it = doko no mise desu ka (どこの店ですか)

6. WHO 誰 ( だれ), or less used どなた. 誰と means "with whom", 誰に "to whom"