Japanese, explained
What does 「何」(nani) mean?
何nani
“What.” 何 is the basic question word for “what.” 何？ = “What?”, 何これ？ = “What’s this?”. The drawn-out, dramatic なにっ!? — “NANI?!” — is the shock reaction you’ll know from anime.
nani or nan?
何 is read nani on its own, but shifts to nan before many counters and です: 何時 (nan-ji, what time), 何人 (nan-nin, how many people), 何ですか (nan desu ka, what is it?). Same kanji — the reading follows what comes next.
Examples
- これは何ですか？
- Kore wa nan desu ka? — What is this?
- 何が欲しいの？
- Nani ga hoshii no? — What do you want?
How people really say it
- なに？
- nani? — Casual “what?” / “yeah?” when someone calls you.
- なにそれ！
- nani sore! — “What’s that?!” — surprised or playfully incredulous.
- なんだよ。
- nanda yo. — An annoyed “what?” / “what’s your problem?”
Related words
- 何 (なん) — “nan,” before counters/です
- 何で — why / how
- 何の — what kind of
- 何事 — what’s going on
Catch なに and 何で in real Japanese
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