Questions are the engine that drives a real conversation-without them, you’re just nodding along. In Japanese, a small set of question words does most of the heavy lifting. Once you grab them, you can find out someone’s name, ask where the station is, or figure out how much that snack costs without pointing and hoping. This list hands you around 26 essential Japanese question words that show up in everyday chats, not the dusty extras from a textbook appendix.
We’ve focused on the practical stuff: dare (who), nani (what), doko (where), and their friends. Each entry gives you a straightforward meaning and a natural example sentence, so you see exactly how the word behaves in the wild-not a lifeless translation. You can listen to every word right in the table, because your ears need practice just as much as your eyes. Hit play and repeat until the sounds feel natural.
Got your thinking cap on? Great—because Japanese question words are the tiny heroes that turn a sentence into a real conversation. Scroll to the bottom for the free printable Japanese question words vocabulary list PDF and the free downloadable printable Japanese question words flashcards.
Want more than one list? Browse our Japanese section for more Yak Yacker study pages, printable lists, and quiz-friendly review material.
Quick Quiz
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Browse the Full List
| Word | Reading | Meaning | Example | Translation | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| いくつ | ikutsu | how many | お子さんはいくつですか。 | How old is your child? | |
| いくつですか | Ikutsu desu ka | how many | りんごはいくつありますか。 | How many apples are there? | |
| いくら | ikura | how much | これはいくらですか。 | How much is this? | |
| いくらですか | Ikura desu ka | how much | このケーキはいくらですか。 | How much is this cake? | |
| いつ | itsu | when | いつ帰りますか。 | When are you going home? | |
| いつですか | Itsu desu ka | when is it? | 会議はいつですか。 | When is the meeting? | |
| どうして | dōshite | why | どうして遅れましたか。 | Why were you late? | |
| どうしてですか | Dōshite desu ka | why is it? | どうして笑うのですか。 | Why are you laughing? | |
| どこ | doko | where | 駅はどこですか。 | Where is the station? | |
| どこですか | Doko desu ka | where is it? | トイレはどこですか。 | Where is the restroom? | |
| どちら | dochira | which way | 駅はどちらですか。 | Which way is the station? | |
| どちらですか | Dochira desu ka | which one; where (polite) | 銀行はどちらですか。 | Which way is the bank? | |
| どの | dono | which | どの本が好きですか。 | Which book do you like? | |
| どのくらい | dono kurai | how long | ここまでどのくらいかかりますか。 | How long does it take to get here? | |
| どのくらいですか | Dono kurai desu ka | how long; how much | 準備はどのくらいですか。 | How long is the preparation? | |
| どの人ですか | Dono hito desu ka | which person | どの人が先生ですか。 | Which person is the teacher? | |
| どれ | dore | which one | どれが一番安いですか。 | Which one is the cheapest? | |
| どれですか | Dore desu ka | which one | あなたのかばんはどれですか。 | Which one is your bag? | |
| なぜ | naze | why | なぜ日本語を勉強しますか。 | Why do you study Japanese? | |
| なぜですか | Naze desu ka | why is it? | なぜ高いですか。 | Why is it expensive? | |
| なに | nani | what | 何を食べますか。 | What will you eat? | |
| なん | nan | what | 何人いますか。 | How many people are there? | |
| 何 | nani / nan | what | 何を食べますか。 | What will you eat? | |
| 何ですか | Nani desu ka | what is it? | これは何ですか。 | What is this? | |
| 誰 | dare | who | 誰が来ますか。 | Who is coming? |
Free Japanese Question Words Vocabulary List and Flashcards
Grab the purple vocab-list button for the Japanese question words vocabulary list and the teal flashcards button for the Japanese question words flashcards. Both downloads are 100% free and require no signup.
