Question Words (疑問詞)
The core interrogatives used to ask for missing information. Japanese word order does NOT invert for questions; the question word simply replaces the unknown noun and the sentence usually ends in か.
Structure
[Sentence with Question Word] + か？
Examples
それは何ですか？
Sore wa nan desu ka?
What is that?
何 (what) is read なん before the t/d/n sounds (like です) and なに elsewhere.
駅へはどう行けばいいですか？
Eki e wa dou ikeba ii desu ka?
How do I get to the station?
どう (how) asks for the manner/route; 〜ばいいですか = "what is good to do / how should I ~".
なぜ彼が泣いているのか？
Naze kare ga naite iru no ka?
Why is he crying?
なぜ (why) vs どうして (why): なぜ is slightly more direct/formal; どうして is everyday use.
• Core Set: 何 (なに/なん) what, どこ where, いつ when, 誰 (だれ) who, なぜ/どうして why, どう how, どれ/どの which. • The "Everything" Formula: [Question word] + も + [Negative Verb] creates absolute negation — 誰も (no one), 何も (nothing), どこも (nowhere). Note いつも means "always" (positive) and is the exception.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones Question is tested against.
vs [Question word] + でも (positive)
誰でも/何でも with a POSITIVE verb means "anyone/anything". The same words with も + NEGATIVE (誰も/何も …ない) mean "no one/nothing".
vs どうして vs なぜ vs なんで
All mean "why": なぜ is formal/written, どうして is neutral-polite, なんで is casual/spoken.
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