In English, "something" and "nothing" are clearly different words. In Japanese, the equivalents — 何か and 何も — look almost identical but work in opposite directions. One goes with affirmative and question sentences, the other demands negation.
何か: Something / Anything (Unspecified)
何か (nanika) means "something" or "anything" — used when you're not sure what specifically:
何か食べませんか。 → Would you like to eat something?
The speaker doesn't know or doesn't specify what food — just a vague "anything is fine, let's eat."
More examples:
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 何か飲みますか。 | Would you like something to drink? |
| 何か買いましたか。 | Did you buy anything? |
| 何かありますか。 | Is there anything (you need)? |
何か + ませんか = Casual Invitation
何か paired with 〜ませんか creates a natural, low-pressure invitation:
何か食べませんか。 → Want to grab a bite? 何か飲みませんか。 → Want to get a drink?
This feels more relaxed than ご飯を食べませんか — since you're not specifying what to eat, there's less pressure.
何も: Nothing / Not... Anything
何も (nanimo) means "nothing" or "not... anything" — and it must be followed by a negative verb.
何も食べません。 → I don't eat anything. / I eat nothing.
何も買いませんでした。 → I didn't buy anything.
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| 何も飲みません。 | I don't drink anything. |
| 何もしませんでした。 | I didn't do anything. |
| 何もありません。 | There's nothing. |
Iron rule: 何も + negative. You cannot say "何も食べます" (I eat everything) — that's ungrammatical. To say "I eat everything," you'd use 何でも食べます instead.
何か vs 何も: Quick Reference
| 何か (nanika) | 何も (nanimo) | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Something / anything | Nothing / not anything |
| Used with | Affirmative / questions | Negative sentences only |
| Nuance | Vague, unspecified | Total negation |
| Example | 何か食べませんか (Want to eat something?) | 何も食べません (I eat nothing) |
Other Indefinite Pronouns: Same Pattern
The "〜か = some..." / "〜も + negative = none" pattern applies to the entire question word family:
| Question word | 〜か (some...) | 〜も + negative (none) |
|---|---|---|
| 何 (what) | 何か something | 何も〜ません nothing |
| 誰 (who) | 誰か someone | 誰も〜ません no one |
| どこ (where) | どこか somewhere | どこも〜ません nowhere |
誰か来ましたか。 → Did someone come? 誰も来ませんでした。 → Nobody came.
どこかへ行きましたか。 → Did you go somewhere? どこも行きませんでした。 → I didn't go anywhere. (In casual speech, どこへも often shortens to どこも)
Conversation Practice
A: 何か食べませんか。 → Want to eat something?
B: ありがとうございます。でも、今は何も食べません。 → Thanks. But I'm not eating anything right now.
A: じゃ、何か飲みませんか。 → Then how about something to drink?
B: コーヒーをお願いします。 → Coffee, please.
Summary
- 何か = something/anything. Used in affirmative and question sentences for unspecified things
- 何も = nothing. Must be followed by a negative verb (ません / ませんでした)
- Same pattern applies to: 誰か/誰も, どこか/どこも
- 何か + ませんか is a natural, low-pressure invitation
Practice Quiz
Q1. How do you say "Would you like something to drink?" in Japanese?
Show Answer
何か飲みませんか。
Unspecified "something" → 何か. Invitation → ませんか.
Q2. How do you say "I didn't buy anything yesterday" in Japanese?
Show Answer
昨日何も買いませんでした。
"Not anything" → 何も + negative. "Didn't buy yesterday" is past negative → 買いませんでした.
Q3. Which sentence is correct? A. 何も食べます。 B. 何も食べません。
Show Answer
B. 何も食べません。
何も must be followed by a negative form. A is ungrammatical. To say "I eat everything," use 何でも食べます instead.