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← All Lessons 26–50

Minna no Nihongo - Lesson 40

Complete Grammar Lesson

Asking and reporting questions inside a sentence: embedded questions with ～か, ～かどうか, trying something with Vてみます, making nouns with ～さ, and softer questions with ～でしょうか.

Lesson 40 in one sentence: this lesson teaches you how to put a question inside a larger sentence, how to say “whether or not,” how to “try doing” something, how to turn qualities such as “heavy” into nouns such as “weight,” and how to ask questions more softly and politely.

Lesson 40 at a glance

1. Question word + か

Put “what / where / when / how / which…” inside another sentence.

2. ～かどうか

Express “whether or not” when there is no question word.

3. Vてみます

Try doing something and see what happens.

4. ～さ / ～でしょうか

Make measurement nouns and ask softer, less direct questions.

1. Embedded questions: Question word + Plain form + か

[Question word + plain-form clause + か] + main sentence

Japanese can put a complete question inside another sentence. The inside question becomes a clause, and か marks the end of that embedded question.

How to build one: First imagine the original direct question. Then remove the direct-question feeling and place that question before another verb such as , , , , or .

Step-by-step example

What did the teacher say?

I don't remember.

Sensei ga nan to itta ka, oboete imasen.

I don't remember what the teacher said.

Important: inside the embedded question, use the plain form, not ます-form.

The question word stays inside the clause

Common interrogative words include:

Japanese Meaning Embedded example
what
where
when
who
which
how much
how
what time
how many books

Examples with verbs

Gohho no e ga ikura de ureta ka shitte imasu ka.

Do you know how much the Van Gogh painting was sold for?

Do you know when Mr./Ms. Tanaka will return?

Please tell me how I should get to the station.

Examples with adjectives and nouns

The embedded clause does not have to end in a verb. It can also end in an adjective or noun.

Kaigi wa itsu ga ii ka kangaete kudasai.

Please think about when would be a good time for the meeting.

Kono kami wa dochira ga omote ka wakarimasen.

I don't know which side of this paper is the front.

Noun / な-adjective note: in this embedded-question structure, the copula だ is normally not placed immediately before か in the standard pattern taught here.

(not the basic Lesson 40 pattern)

Real-life “What are you checking/researching?” examples

A: What are you counting? — B: I'm counting how many Japanese books there are.

A: What are you talking about? — B: We're discussing what would be good as a birthday present.

A: What are you researching? — B: I'm researching how we can make good-tasting water.

A: What are you checking? — B: I'm checking what time Nozomi 26 departs.

2. ～かどうか — “whether or not”

[Plain-form clause + かどうか] + main sentence

Use ～かどうか when the embedded question is basically a yes/no question and there is no interrogative word such as 何, どこ, いつ, or だれ.

Think of it literally as: “whether it is A or not.”
Direct question:
Embedded:

Nimotsu ga todoita ka dō ka kakunin shite kudasai.

Please check whether the package has arrived.

Machigai ga nai ka dō ka, mō ichido tashikamete kudasai.

Please check one more time whether there are any mistakes.

With nouns and adjectives

Kādo o mōshikomu toki, hanko ga hitsuyō ka dō ka oshiete kudasai.

Please tell me whether a seal is necessary when applying for the card.

Nimotsu no omosa ga nijukiro yori karui ka dō ka hakatte kudasai.

Please measure whether the package weighs less than 20 kilograms.

Again, do not put だ before かどうか in the standard Lesson 40 pattern.

More natural examples

The roads are crowded, so I don't know whether we'll make it by 10 o'clock.

I don't know whether that restaurant is good because I haven't eaten there yet.

I haven't seen him/her recently, so I don't know whether he/she is well.

It was a gift, so I don't know whether it was bought in Italy.

Question word + か vs ～かどうか

Type of hidden question Pattern Example
Contains “what / where / when / who / how…” Question word + か
Yes/no question ～かどうか

Do you know when Tanaka will come?

Do you know whether or not Tanaka will come?

3. Vてみます — “try doing something”

Verb-て + みます

Vてみます means to try doing an action and see what happens. It is not merely “attempt” in the sense of struggling to perform an action; it often includes the idea of testing or experiencing the result.

Think: “I'll do it once and see.”
= I'll try eating it and see what it's like.

Mō ichido kangaete mimasu.

I'll try thinking it over once more.

Kono zubon o haite mite mo ii desu ka.

May I try these trousers on?

Saizu ga au ka dō ka, kite mite kudasai.

Please try it on and see whether the size fits.

Useful forms

Form Japanese Meaning
Polite I'll try eating it.
Plain I'll try eating it.
Past I tried eating it.
Request Please try eating it.
Permission May I try eating it?
Invitation Would you like to try eating it?

Real-life examples

This app is useful. Try using it.

I don't know, so I'll try looking it up myself.

This is my first time seeing this dish. I'd like to try eating it.

Useful extension: means “I would like to try doing V.”
Example: = I'd like to try skiing in Japan.

Vてみます vs Vようとします

These are not the same.

I will try eating it to see what it is like.

I attempt / am about to try to eat it. The focus is on the attempt itself.

For ordinary “try this food / try this method / try wearing this,” Vてみます is the natural Lesson 40 expression.

4. Adjective + ～さ — turning a quality into a noun

い-adjective: remove い + さ

The suffix ～さ turns an adjective into a noun meaning “the degree / amount / quality of …”

English often uses a different word: heavy → weight, high → height, long → length. Japanese can create these systematically with ～さ.
Adjective Meaning ～さ noun Noun meaning
heavy weight
high / tall height
long length
big size
fast speed
deep depth
wide / spacious width / spaciousness / area-like extent

Examples with measurements

Omosa wa yaku hyakkiro desu.

The weight is approximately 100 kilograms.

Fujisan no takasa wa sanzen nanahyaku nanajūroku mētoru desu.

The height of Mt. Fuji is 3,776 meters.

Is the length of the trousers okay?

The size of this shirt is just right.

Useful extension: ～さ also works with many な-adjectives

Although Lesson 40 commonly introduces ～さ through い-adjectives, the suffix is more general in Japanese.

Adjective ～さ noun Meaning
convenience
quietness
importance
Special useful form: いい → よさ (“goodness / good point”), not × いさ.
Example: = I want people to know what is good about this town.

5. ～でしょうか — softer and more indirect questions

Plain-form clause + でしょうか

～でしょうか can make a question sound softer, more cautious, and less direct than a straightforward ～ですか / ～ますか question.

In many situations, the speaker believes the listener may know the answer, but asks with some uncertainty or politeness. English equivalents vary: “I wonder…,” “Would you happen to know…?”, “Could it be…?”, or simply a more polite question.

Haru-chan wa gakkō de dō deshō ka. Chotto shinpai desu.

I wonder how Haru is doing at school. I'm a little worried.

Sono jiken ni tsuite nanika shitte iru deshō ka.

I wonder whether you know anything about that incident.

～ですか vs ～でしょうか

Question Feeling
Normal polite: How is it?
Softer: How would it be? / I wonder how it is.
Do you know?
Would you happen to know? / I wonder whether you know.
Do not assume でしょうか is always “more respectful.” Its main contribution is often indirectness and uncertainty. Politeness comes from the whole expression and context.

Offering something politely: ～はいかがでしょうか

is already a polite way to ask “How about…?” or “Would you like…?” Using makes the offer even softer and more formal.

Onomimono wa ikaga deshō ka.

Would you like something to drink?

How about some coffee?

This form is common in customer service, business conversations, restaurants, hotels, reception desks, and other situations where a gentle offer is appropriate.

6. Important comparisons

A. Direct question vs embedded question

What did the teacher say? direct question

I don't remember what the teacher said. embedded question

B. 何を～か vs ～かどうか

Have you decided what to buy?

Have you decided whether or not to buy it?

C. Vます vs Vてみます

I will eat this cake. Normal action.

I'll try this cake and see what it is like. Experiment / experience.

D. ですか vs でしょうか

What time will it finish?

I wonder what time it will finish. / Do you know what time it might finish?

7. Real-life mini conversations

At work: checking delivery status

A: Could you check whether the package has arrived?

B: Sure. I'll check and see.

Buying clothes

A: May I try this shirt on?

B: Certainly. Please try it and see whether the size fits.

Planning a meeting

A: When would be a good time for the meeting?

B: I'll check when everyone is available.

Asking about a product

A: About how heavy is this package?

B: I'll weigh it and see.

8. Common mistakes

Mistake 1: using かどうか when there is already a question word

For “when,” use:
For “whether he will come,” use:
Mistake 2: keeping ます inside an embedded question

Mistake 3: confusing “try doing” with “can do”
= I will try eating it.
= I can eat it.
Mistake 4: ～さ describes the quality as a noun
= high / tall
= height
Mistake 5: assuming でしょうか always means uncertainty about probability
It can express uncertainty, but it is also frequently used simply to make a question softer and less direct.

9. Quick cheat sheet

Grammar Core meaning Example
Question word + plain + か what/where/when/how... inside another sentence
Plain + かどうか whether or not
Vてみます try doing and see
Adj + さ degree/quality as a noun
～でしょうか soft / cautious question
～はいかがでしょうか polite offer/suggestion

10. Practice

A. Combine the two ideas using an embedded question


  1. + I don't know.

  2. + Please check.

B. Choose か or かどうか

  1. かどうか
  2. か
  3. かどうか

C. Change to Vてみます

D. Change the adjective into a ～さ noun

E. Translate into Japanese

  1. I don't know what the teacher said.
  2. Please check whether the package has arrived.
  3. I'll try using this app.
  4. What is the height of this building?
  5. Would you like something to drink?

Sample answers — other natural wordings are also correct.

11. Final memory rules

Use this when the hidden question contains a question word: “what / where / when / who / how…”

Use this for a yes/no hidden question: “whether or not.”

“Try doing it and see what happens.”

Add ～さ to turn a quality into a noun such as weight, height, length, or size.

A softer, more cautious way to ask a question or make an offer.