by Tomoyuki Higuchi
How do you say “How many languages do you speak?” in Japanese?
Today’s phrase is :
How many languages do you speak?
何か国語しゃべれるの？
nankakokugo shabereruno*
*We often pronounce “しゃべれるの shabereruno” like “しゃべれんの shaberenno” in casual conversation.
If you want to ask politely, you can say :
何か国語しゃべれるんですか？
nankakokugo shabererundesuka
- How many languages ＝ 何か国語 nankakokugo
- do you speak? ＝ しゃべれるの？ shabereruno
We do not usually say “あなたは anatawa (= you)” in everyday conversation.
何か国語
How many languages
＋
あなたは しゃべれるの？
do you speak?