Naze X Doushite X Nande - "Why?" And "How" In Japanese

Do you know how to say “Why?” in Japanese? In this article, we will talk about the two most popular ways to express why and their differences, we will discuss the famous “doushite” [どうして], “naze” [何故], and nande [なんで].

Previously, we wrote an article discussing the differences between nande, nani, nanda and their derivatives. Where they mean “what?”, “which”, “how”, etc. We also briefly mentioned doushite and naze.

What does Doushite mean?

Depending on the situation, Doushite [如何して] can mean why; for what reason; for what purpose; for what; how; in what way; by what means. Doushite is not very formal, but it is also not informal.

The word doushite also has other uses and complements. You can say for example, doushitemo [どうしても] which means no matter how; by all means; at any cost; certainly; in no way; under no circumstances; whether you like it or not; eventually, etc.

The ideogram [如] present in doushite [如何して] conveys a meaning of similarity, like, as if, better and equal. There is also the word ikan [如何] written with the same ideograms and means how, in what way and circumstances.

The word doushite [どうして] is literally the combination of the word dou [どう] which means how; in what way, together with shite [して] which is the verb suru. In fact, there is the word dousuru [どうする] which means “What to do?“.

There are variations like doushita and doushitano [どうしたの] which means “What’s the problem?”, “What’s wrong?”, “What happened?”, and “In some way”…

What does Nande mean?

This is the broadest way to say why, also the most informal. It should not be confused with nandesuka [なんですか], since the present in the expression refers to the particle de [で].

Nande is the most informal way of all. You should only use it among close friends and in very informal situations. Doushite sounds a bit more informal and can indeed be used with teachers, bosses, and older people, if you have a bit of familiarity.

There are other expressions derived from nande like nandemonai [なんでもない] which means it’s nothing or insignificant. One should not confuse nande with nanda [なんだ] which means “what?”.

What does Naze mean?

Depending on the situation, Naze [何故] means why; how; in what way; for what reason. This is the most formal way to express why or how. This form is not used with close friends or depending on the situation.

If you need to be much more formal, you should use nazedesuka [何故ですか] instead of just naze. It may be a bit rude to use just naze in a very formal situation.

The word nazenara [なぜなら] literally means reason and because. The expression nazeka [なぜか] is not a question and means somehow; for some reason; without knowing why and for the reason.

What is the difference between Naze x Doushite and Nande?

Although both mean almost the same thing, naze seems to be more of a why than doushite. The word doushite is more informal and can convey an idea of “how” or “how come?“.

Doushite ends up being used when speaking directly to someone, when you ask the person directly what happened or what the problem is. On the other hand, naze is used as a simple why.

You wouldn’t say doushite when your boss doesn’t want to raise your salary. You can say doushite if your boss is going through some situation, you have some familiarity, and you are trying to understand what happened and why he is upset.

Reaffirming and summarizing: Naze is closer to why and doushite is closer to how… Nande is very informal and chaotic, but it is very common to hear.

Think of the bright side, at least we don’t have 4 whys in Japanese like we do in Portuguese. Fortunately, the options for why do not force us to understand the writing and form of the sentence. Just remember the best moment to use them.

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