Naze, doushite, nande: why and how in Japanese

Do you know how to say why in Japanese? In this article we will talk about doushite [どうして], naze [なぜ] and nande [なんで], and about how they differ.

Previously, we wrote an article on the differences between nande, nani and nanda. We mentioned doushite and naze there only in passing.

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What does doushite mean?

Doushite [どうして] is dou [どう], how or in what way, plus shite [して], the te-form of the verb suru. Dou with the verb itself is dousuru [どうする]: what are you going to do?

The Digital Daijisen lists two question senses for this adverb. The first is method, どのようにして, どうやって: どうして時間をつぶそうか, how shall we pass the time? The second is a cause, and the entry glosses it with naze: どうしてそんなにのろいのか, why are you so slow?

An English how and an English why can both come out as doushite. どうしてそうなった can mean how it turned out this way, or why it turned out this way. A flat question about the process leans toward how. The same words, said with surprise or frustration, lean toward why. It can also push back on what someone expects: これがどうして黙っていられよう, how could anyone stay silent at this?

The kanji string 如何して is a separate word, read ikanishite [いかにして]. It asks how, or for what reason, in a literary register: 如何にして再興すべきか, how should it be restored? Tsubouchi Shōyō's Tōsei shosei katagi (1885-86) prints 如何して with the reading どう in the line 守山君は如何してそんなに勉強ができるだらう, which is why an old page can look like a kanji spelling of doushite. Everyday doushite is written in hiragana. The character 如 means like or as, the sense of classical 如し [ごとし].

The noun ikan [いかん] uses those same characters 如何 and names the course of events. 理由のいかんによっては means depending on what the reason turns out to be.

Doushitemo [どうしても] has two clear uses in that dictionary. Next to an obstacle it means no matter what you try: どうしても納得できない, I cannot accept it, however I look at it. Next to a wish it means at all costs: どうしても成功させたい, I want to make this succeed no matter what.

Doushita and doushitano [どうしたの] ask what happened or what is wrong. That is the question you put to someone who looks upset.

What does nande mean?

Nande [なんで], written 何で, is the casual why. Daijisen glosses it as どういうわけで, どうして and なぜ: 何でけんかなんかしたのだ, why on earth did you get into a fight? You hear it all the time among friends. Aimed at a teacher or a boss, the same word can sound blunt, even childish.

Nandesuka [なんですか] is a different phrase: 何 plus です plus か, so what is it? The で in that spelling belongs to desu, the polite copula. When you mean with what or by what means, say nanide [なにで], 何 plus the particle で, so the particle stays obvious.

Nandemonai [なんでもない] means the thing is too small to fuss over. 風邪ぐらいなんでもない: a cold is no big deal. Nanda [なんだ] is 何だ, what is that? あの音は何だ, what is that sound?

What does naze mean?

Naze [なぜ], written 何故, asks for a reason or a cause. The Daijisen gloss is どうして, なにゆえ and どういうわけで. 空は何故青いの, why is the sky blue? 何故怒られたのかわからない, the speaker cannot tell why they were scolded. The method sense, the どうやって kind, stays with doushite.

In writing, and in a careful spoken question, naze is the plain choice: なぜ遅れたのですか, why were you late? Said alone to someone's face, with no ですか around it, the same word can sound like a demand for the reason. In a formal room, nazedesuka [なぜですか] puts the politeness on the question.

Nazenara [なぜなら] opens the explanation that follows. It is the short form of なぜならば. 今は何とも言えない。何故ならばまだ協議中だから: I cannot say anything yet, because the matter is still under discussion. Nazeka [なぜか] marks a reason you cannot pin down. 何故か心が騒ぐ: for some reason I feel uneasy.

What is the difference between naze, doushite and nande?

When the question is a reason, Daijisen lists naze, doushite and nande as words for that same question. A report can take naze, a conversation can take doushite, and nande stays with friends. Doushite is also the one that can still mean how.

Doushite is also what you say when you are talking to the person and you want to know what happened. If your boss is going through some situation and you already have some familiarity, doushite asks what happened and why he is upset. A raise is a different moment: you are asking for a reason, and the person is your boss. なんで給料を上げてくれないの, aimed at that boss, is too bare. Nazedesuka asks for the reason. どうしてですか fits when you already speak easily together.