You already know 何 (what), 誰 (who), and どこ (where). Now it's time to learn their shapeshifting trick: add か and they become "something/someone/somewhere." Add も + negative and they become "nothing/nobody/nowhere." This pattern is everywhere in N5 and daily conversation.
Move 1: Question Word + か = Indefinite "Some-"
Adding か after a question word changes its meaning from "what/who/where" to "something/someone/somewhere":
| Question word | + か | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 何 (what) | 何か | something |
| 誰 (who) | 誰か | someone |
| どこ (where) | どこか | somewhere |
| いつ (when) | いつか | sometime |
Compare: Question Word vs Question Word + か
| Japanese | English | What it asks |
|---|---|---|
| 何を買いましたか。 | What did you buy? | Asks for a specific item |
| 何か買いましたか。 | Did you buy anything? | Yes/No question |
The first asks "what exactly," the second asks "whether or not."
Another pair:
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 昨日どこへ行きましたか。 | Where did you go yesterday? (asks for the specific place) |
| 昨日どこかへ行きましたか。 | Did you go anywhere yesterday? (asks whether you went out) |
Particle Order
か sticks right after the question word; other particles follow:
- 何かを買いました。 → I bought something. (か + を)
- どこかへ行きました。 → I went somewhere. (か + へ)
- 誰かが来ました。 → Someone came. (か + が)
In casual speech, を is often dropped: 何か買いましたか。
Move 2: Question Word + も + Negative = Total Negation
Adding も after a question word and ending with a negative verb creates total negation — "nothing/nobody/nowhere":
| Question word + も | Negative form | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 何も | ありません | There is nothing |
| 誰も | いません | There is nobody |
| どこも | 行きませんでした | I went nowhere |
Examples
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 何もありません。 | There is nothing. |
| 誰もいません。 | Nobody is here. |
| どこも行きませんでした。 | I didn't go anywhere. |
も "Eats" が and を
Just like も (also) replaces は, here も replaces が and を:
| Normal sentence | Total negation | Replaced particle |
|---|---|---|
| 何があります → | 何もありません | が → も |
| 何を買います → | 何も買いません | を → も |
| 誰がいます → | 誰もいません | が → も |
But に, へ, で are NOT replaced — も goes after them:
- どこ（へ）も行きませんでした。 → I didn't go anywhere.
Counter + も + Negative = Not Even One
This pattern also works with counters to emphasize "not even one":
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 一人もいません。 | There isn't even one person. |
| 一つもありません。 | There isn't even one. |
This is stronger than simply saying "there aren't any" — it emphasizes zero quantity.
か vs も at a Glance
| Pattern | Meaning | Example | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Question word + か | some- (indefinite) | 何かありますか。 | Is there anything? |
| Question word + も + negative | none at all | 何もありません。 | There is nothing. |
Memory formula: か = some (vague positive), も + negative = none at all (total negative)
Wrap-Up
- Question word + か = indefinite "some-": 何か (something), 誰か (someone), どこか (somewhere)
- Question word + も + negative = total negation: 何も〜ない (nothing), 誰も〜ない (nobody)
- も replaces が and を, but does not replace に/へ/で
- Counter + も + negative = not even one (一人もいません)
Practice
Q1. What's the difference between 「何を買いましたか」 and 「何か買いましたか」?
Show Answer
- 何を買いましたか = What did you buy? (asks for a specific item — answer would be "I bought XX")
- 何か買いましたか = Did you buy anything? (Yes/No question — asks whether a purchase happened)
Key difference: 何 = asks what specifically, 何か = just asks yes or no.
Q2. How do you say "Nobody is here" in Japanese?
Show Answer
誰もいません。
Question word 誰 + も + negative いません = nobody is here. も replaces が.
Q3. Someone asks 「昨日どこかへ行きましたか。」 How do you answer "I didn't go anywhere"?
Show Answer
どこも行きませんでした。
(Or more fully: どこへも行きませんでした。) Question word どこ + も + negative 行きませんでした = didn't go anywhere.