How to Ask Questions in Japanese: Your Complete Guide to Japanese Question Words

So you want to start asking questions in Japanese? Good call. Questions are basically how you survive in any language. You can't just point at stuff forever.

The cool thing about Japanese question words is that they're actually pretty straightforward once you get the hang of them. Most of them start with the same sound (that "d" sound), which makes them easier to remember than you'd think. Plus, unlike English where question structure can get weird, Japanese keeps the same sentence order whether you're making a statement or asking a question.

Here's the thing though. You can't just memorize a list of question words and call it done. You need to understand how they work with particles, when to use formal versus casual versions, and why sometimes the particle comes before the question word and sometimes after. That's what we're covering here.

Basic Japanese Question Words You Need to Know

Let's start with the core question words. These are your bread and butter for asking basically anything.

Nani/Nan (何) means "what." You'll see this written in kanji as 何, and yeah, it has two pronunciations. Generally, you use "nan" before certain sounds (like "d" and "n") and "nani" in other contexts. For example, "Kore wa nan desu ka (これは何ですか)" means "What is this?" The "desu ka (ですか)" at the end is what makes it a question in polite speech.

Dare (誰) means "who." Pretty straightforward. "Dare desu ka (誰ですか)" asks "Who is it?"

Doko (どこ) means "where." This one's super useful. "Toire wa doko desu ka (トイレはどこですか)" is probably one of the first questions you'll actually need: "Where is the bathroom?"

Itsu (いつ) means "when." No kanji needed for this one, just hiragana. "Itsu desu ka (いつですか)" asks "When is it?"

Naze (なぜ) and Nande (なんで) both mean "why." Naze is more formal, while nande is casual. You'll also hear Doushite (どうして), which sits somewhere in between formality-wise.

Dou (どう) means "how." You can ask "Dou desu ka (どうですか)" to mean "How is it?" or "How about it?"

See what I mean about that "d" sound? Doko, dare, dou, doushite. The Japanese language really likes patterns.

Understanding Particles with Question Words

Okay, this is where people get confused. Particles in Japanese are those little words that show the grammatical function of what comes before them. With question words, particles work the same way they do in regular sentences, but the placement can look weird if you're coming from English.

The particle wa (は) marks the topic of the sentence. When you say "Toire wa doko desu ka (トイレはどこですか)," you're literally saying "As for the bathroom, where is it?" The bathroom is your topic, and you're asking where it is.

The particle ga (が) marks the subject, and this is where things get interesting. "Doko ga ichiban samui desu ka (どこが一番寒いですか)" means "Where is the coldest?" Here, doko comes before ga because the question word itself is the subject. You're asking which place is the coldest.

So to answer that question from earlier about why どこ appears before and after particles: it depends on whether the question word is the topic/object or the subject. When the bathroom is the topic and you're asking about its location, you say "toire wa doko." When the location itself is the subject doing something (like being the coldest), you say "doko ga."

The particle o (を) marks the object of an action. "Nani o tabemasu ka (何を食べますか)" asks "What will you eat?" The "what" is the object being eaten, so it gets the o particle.

This particle stuff matters way more than most beginner guides let on. Get it wrong and your question can sound really awkward or even change meaning.

"What" in Japanese: Nani vs Nan (何)

Let's dig deeper into 何 because it's probably the question word you'll use most.

The general rule is that nan appears before "d," "n," and "t" sounds, while nani appears before particles and in other contexts. So you say "nan desu ka" but "nani o" or "nani ga."

"Are wa nan desu ka (あれは何ですか)" means "What is that?" This is super useful when you see something you don't recognize.

You'll also see 何 in compound forms. Nanika (何か) means "something" (literally "what-か"). Nannin (何人) asks "how many people?" when you're counting people specifically. Nansai (何歳) asks "how old?" when talking about age.

The kanji 何 is worth learning early because you'll see it everywhere. It shows up in tons of words beyond just the question word.

"Where" Questions with Doko (どこ)

Doko is one of those words you'll use constantly. Beyond just "Where is X?" you can use it in all sorts of ways.

"Doko ni ikimasu ka (どこに行きますか)" asks "Where are you going?" The particle ni here indicates direction or destination.

"Doko kara kimashita ka (どこから来ましたか)" asks "Where did you come from?" The particle kara means "from."

"Doko de kaimashita ka (どこで買いましたか)" asks "Where did you buy it?" The particle de indicates where an action takes place.

You can also use dochira (どちら) as a more polite version of doko. "Dochira kara irasshaimashita ka (どちらからいらっしゃいましたか)" is a formal way to ask where someone came from. You'll hear this in business situations or when talking to people you need to show respect to.

"When" Questions with Itsu (いつ)

Itsu is beautifully simple. Just stick it in a sentence where the time would go.

"Itsu ikimasu ka (いつ行きますか)" means "When are you going?"

"Itsu kara desu ka (いつからですか)" asks "From when?" or "Since when?"

"Itsu made desu ka (いつまでですか)" asks "Until when?"

One thing to note: いつ doesn't usually take particles like ni (the time particle) the way specific times do. You say "goji ni (5時に)" for "at 5 o'clock," but just "itsu" without ni for "when."

"Why" Questions: Naze (なぜ), Nande (なんで), and Doushite (どうして)

Japanese gives you three main ways to ask "why," and they're not totally interchangeable.

Naze (なぜ) is the most formal. You'd use this in writing or very formal speech. "Naze desu ka (なぜですか)" sounds pretty stiff in casual conversation.

Doushite (どうして) is your middle-ground option. It's polite enough for most situations but doesn't sound stuffy. "Doushite konakatta no (どうして来なかったの)" asks "Why didn't you come?" in a normal, conversational way.

Nande (なんで) is casual. Use this with friends and people you're comfortable with. "Nande (なんで)?" by itself is basically "Why?" or "How come?"

All three work grammatically the same way. They just carry different levels of formality.

"Which" Variations: Dore (どれ), Dono (どの), and Docchi (どっち)

When you need to ask "which" in Japanese, you've got options depending on the situation.

Dore (どれ) means "which one" when choosing from three or more things. "Dore ga ii desu ka (どれがいいですか)" asks "Which one is good?"

Dono (どの) means "which" as a modifier. It comes before a noun. "Dono hon desu ka (どの本ですか)" asks "Which book is it?"

Docchi (どっち) or the more polite dochira (どちら) means "which" when choosing between two things. "Docchi ga suki (どっちが好き)" asks "Which do you like?" in casual speech.

Dochira also doubles as a polite version of doko (where) and dare (who) in certain contexts. "Dochira-sama desu ka (どちら様ですか)" is a formal way to ask "Who are you?" that you'd hear on the phone or at a reception desk.

"How" Questions with Dou (どう)

Dou is your basic "how" question word. It asks about manner, method, or opinion.

"Dou desu ka (どうですか)" is incredibly versatile. It can mean "How is it?" "What do you think?" or "How about it?" depending on context.

"Dou shimasu ka (どうしますか)" asks "What will you do?" or "How will you do it?"

"Dou yatte (どうやって)" means "how" in the sense of "by what method." "Dou yatte ikimasu ka (どうやって行きますか)" asks "How do you get there?"

You'll also see douiu (どういう) meaning "what kind of." "Douiu imi desu ka (どういう意味ですか)" asks "What does it mean?" or literally "What kind of meaning is it?"

Counting Questions: Ikutsu (いくつ) and Counters

Japanese uses different counters for different types of things, and this shows up in questions too.

Ikutsu (いくつ) is your general "how many" or "how old" question word. "Ikutsu desu ka (いくつですか)" can ask someone's age (casually) or how many of something there are.

But Japanese also has specific counter questions. We already mentioned nannin (何人) for people. You'll also see:

Ikura (いくら) asks "how much" for price. "Ikura desu ka (いくらですか)" is essential for shopping.

Nankai (何回) asks "how many times."

Nansatsu (何冊) asks "how many books" specifically.

The polite version of ikutsu for age is oikutsu (おいくつ). "Oikutsu desu ka (おいくつですか)" is a respectful way to ask someone's age.

Making Questions Polite: Desu Ka (ですか) and Beyond

In casual Japanese, you can just use rising intonation to make something a question. "Nani (何)?" with a questioning tone means "What?"

But in polite speech, you add desu ka (ですか) or masu ka (ますか) to the end of sentences. This is the standard polite question form you'll use most of the time.

"Kore wa nan desu ka (これは何ですか)" is polite. "Kore wa nani (これは何)?" is casual.

For even more formal situations, you might hear deshou ka (でしょうか), which adds a layer of politeness and sometimes uncertainty. "Dochira deshou ka (どちらでしょうか)" is a very polite "Which might it be?"

The particle ka (か) is what actually marks a question grammatically. In casual speech, especially among younger people, you'll often hear questions without it, relying purely on intonation. But in polite speech, that ka is essential.

Common Question Patterns You'll Actually Use

Let's look at some real patterns you'll use all the time.

"X wa Y desu ka (XはYですか)" is your basic "Is X Y?" pattern. "Kore wa anata no desu ka (これはあなたのですか)" asks "Is this yours?"

"X ga arimasu ka (Xがありますか)" asks "Is there X?" or "Do you have X?" Super useful in shops and restaurants.

"X o shitte imasu ka (Xを知っていますか)" asks "Do you know X?" The verb "shitte imasu" means "to know."

"Dou yatte X shimasu ka (どうやってXしますか)" asks "How do you do X?"

These patterns work with any question word. Swap in nani, doko, itsu, whatever you need.

Putting It All Together

The beautiful thing about Japanese question words is that once you learn them, they work consistently. You don't have to rearrange your whole sentence like in English where "You are going" becomes "Are you going?"

Japanese keeps the same structure. "Anata wa gakkou ni ikimasu (あなたは学校に行きます)" means "You go to school." Add ka and it becomes "Anata wa gakkou ni ikimasu ka (あなたは学校に行きますか)" meaning "Do you go to school?" Swap in a question word and you get "Anata wa doko ni ikimasu ka (あなたはどこに行きますか)" for "Where do you go?"

The particle system takes some getting used to, but it's actually more consistent than English once you understand it. The question word goes where the answer would go, and the particles tell you its grammatical role.

Start with the basic question words and desu ka endings. Get comfortable asking simple questions. Then layer in the particle nuances, the polite variations, and the compound forms.

You'll mess up particle placement sometimes. Everyone does. But Japanese speakers are generally super patient with learners, and even a slightly awkward question gets your point across.

Anyway, if you want to practice these question words with actual Japanese content, Migaku's browser extension lets you look up words and save sentences while watching Japanese shows or reading articles. Makes it way easier to see how these words work in real contexts. There's a 10-day free trial if you want to check it out.