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Japanese vocabulary · Beginner
How do you say "How old are you?" in Japanese?
何歳ですか？
nan sai desu ka ?
In Japanese, "How old are you?" is 何歳ですか？ (nan sai desu ka ?).
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Pronunciation
何歳ですか？ is written using kanji. Romanised as nan sai desu ka ?, it sounds roughly like "nah-n-sah-ee-deh-soo-kah" to an English ear.
Writing and usage
Nansai (何歳) literally means how many years, with nan (what) plus sai (year-old). This is a direct age question but can feel intrusive in formal contexts.
Example sentence
「何歳ですか？」と聞くときは丁寧に言いましょう。
'Nansai desu ka?' to kiku toki wa teinei ni iimashou.
Be polite when asking 'How old are you?'
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How to remember 何歳ですか？
Nansai is what-year-old squashed into one flow. The kanji 歳 looks like a tree with growth rings, marking the passage of years.
Related words
- who is your best friend? 親友は誰ですか？ shinyū wa dare desu ka ？
- what don't you want? 欲しくないものは何ですか？ hoshikunai mono wa nan desu ka ？
- what is the temperature on thursday? 木曜日の気温は何度ですか？ mokuyōbi no kion wa nan dodesu ka ？
- what is the weather on tuesday? 火曜日の天気は何ですか？ kayōbi no tenki wa nan desu ka ？
- what is the temperature on sunday? 日曜日の気温は何度ですか？ nichiyōbi no kion wa nan dodesu ka ？
- what is the weather on monday? 月曜日の天気は何ですか？ getsuyōbi no tenki wa nan desu ka ？
- what is the weather on wednesday? 水曜日の天気は何ですか？ suiyōbi no tenki wa nan desu ka ？
- why are you here? なぜここにいるのですか？ naze koko ni iru no desu ka ？
- what is the temperature on friday? 金曜日の気温は何度ですか？ kinyōbi no kion wa nan dodesu ka ？
Browse all Japanese words in the glossary.
Questions about 何歳ですか？
How do you pronounce 何歳ですか?
何歳ですか？ is romanised as nan sai desu ka ?. Say it roughly like "nah-n-sah-ee-deh-soo-kah" in English. Each Japanese syllable has even weight, so keep the rhythm steady.
Is 何歳ですか formal or casual?
何歳ですか？ is a neutral, everyday word that works in both casual and polite speech. The level of formality comes from the sentence structure around it, not from the word itself.
How is 何歳ですか written in Japanese?
何歳ですか？ is written using kanji. Nansai (何歳) literally means how many years, with nan (what) plus sai (year-old).
Where can I practice Japanese words for free?
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"How old are you?" in other languages
- Korean 몇 살이에요? (myeot salieyo?)
- Chinese 你多大了? (nǐ duō dà le ?)
- Spanish ¿Qué edad tienes?
- Spanish (Latin America) ¿Cuántos años tienes?
- French Quel âge as-tu ?
- German Wie alt bist du?
- Italian Quanti anni hai?
- Russian Сколько тебе лет? (skolʹko tebe let?)
- Greek Πόσων χρονλων είσαι; (poson hronon ise)
- Arabic أنت عندك كام سنة؟ (inta Aandak kaem sana)
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