なぜ and どうして

[Kirakira1232]

Hi guys

I was wondering I know that both naze and doushite both translate to "why" but whats the difference? Doushite to me seems more like "How is it so?" whereas naze is more like "why..."

Am I on the right track or completely off?

 

[Charles Barkley]

どうして and なぜ are synonyms.

どうして in other contexts can also be used to des to ask 'in what way' (effectively 'how'). This does not change the fact that in other situations, it is identical to なぜ.

なんで is another synonym that means 'why.'

なんで is more informal. I could be wrong, but it also seems like men use なんで more and women どうして, though both sexes use both.

なぜ, to me, has a slightly more rational feel while the others are slightly more emotional.

For all intents and purposes however, feel free to use the three interchangeably, though drop なんで in formal situations...

 

[Kirakira1232]

Ahh thanks! I was wondering why in some contexts doushite or naze were being used and I dont think my Japanese tutor understood what i was asking.

 

[Tomii515]

Are 'nani' and 'nanda' also interchangeable?

 

[undrentide]

Are 'nani' and 'nanda' also interchangeable?

Depends on the context.
If it is used to ask "what (did you say/is it/etc.)?" as a complete sentence, yes.
Because in this case, "nanda" is "nan(i)+da".
Otherwise, basically no. (Cannot think of other cases or exception right now...)

 

[Toritoribe]

In addition to Charles Barkley's explaination above, どうして/なんで can be used as どうやって in some contexts.

ここからどうして帰ろう？ ＝ ここからどうやって帰ろう？
How do I/we go back home from here?

東京まではなんで行くの？ ＝ 東京まではどうやって行くの？
What would you use to go to Tokyo?

On the other hand, なぜ is used only for "why" context.

 

[MMM]

Are 'nani' and 'nanda' also interchangeable?

If this is a response to something someone said, then "nani" is like "What did you say? (Can you repeat that?)" where "nanda" is like "What the heck are you saying?"