な Japanese Grammar Intermediate

Kana な

1. ～ながら（も） ながらも A concessive conjunction meaning 'although' or 'despite,' used to express a contradiction between two coexisting states or actions. It in...
2. ～てならない ならない An expression meaning 'unbearably,' 'can't help but feel,' or 'extremely.' It describes an overwhelming psychological or physical sensati...
3. ～ないことも／はない ないこともない A double negative expression meaning 'it's not that... not' or 'it is possible, though not wholeheartedly.' It makes a cautious, hedged a...
4. ～なりに なりに A phrase meaning 'in one's own way' or 'to the best of one's ability,' expressing that someone does something in a manner appropriate to ...
5. ～なり～なり なり A phrase used to indicate two representative choices or examples, implying 'whether A or B' or 'something like A or B.' It suggests that ...
6. 何しろ なにしろ An adverb indicating the speaker's emotive feeling about an extreme state or situation. It means 'after all,' 'at any rate,' or 'the fact...
7. ～などと などと A compound particle that indicates an approximate or dismissive quotation of words, thoughts, or ideas. It means 'something like...' or '...
8. なかなか (quite / not easily) なかなか An adverb with two main uses: with affirmative predicates it means 'quite' or 'considerably' (expressing that something is more impressiv...
9. なく (written continuative of ない) なく A continuative form of ない used in written Japanese to connect clauses, often indicating a reason, cause, or contrasting circumstance for ...
10. ～なあ (exclamatory particle) なあ A sentence-final particle used in informal male speech to express strong emotion such as admiration, longing, or deep feeling. It adds an...
11. なしでは (without) なしでは A compound particle meaning 'without,' used to express that something cannot be accomplished or a situation cannot exist if a particular ...
12. ～何でも (whatever / anything) なんでも A phrase combining the interrogative 何 with でも to express 'whatever' or 'anything.' It indicates the speaker's uncertainty about a specif...