なに・なん

## What it means 何 is the word for "what". It can be read two different ways — **なに** or **なん** — depending on the sound that comes right after it. The meaning never changes, only the pronunciation.

## When to use it Use **なん** when 何 is followed by だ, です, a sound in the な-row (な, に, ぬ, ね, の), or a counter word like 何人 (how many people) or 何時 (what time). Use **なに** in most other cases, especially right before particles like を, が, で, and と. For example: 何ですか (なんですか, "what is it?") but 何を食べますか (なにを食べますか, "what will you eat?").

## Don't confuse it with The tricky part isn't a different grammar point — it's remembering which sound triggers which reading. A safe shortcut: if 何 is followed by a counter (時, 人, 歳, 曜日, 月) or です/だ, say なん; otherwise, default to なに. Getting this backwards is one of the most common small mistakes even confident learners make.