Structure
Verb + なんて
［い］Adjective + なんて
［な］Adjective + なんて
Noun + なんて(1)
(1) なんか
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Standard
About なんか・なんて
なんか is an expression in Japanese that is frequently associated with the adverbial particle など. They are thought to have overlapping meanings in many circumstances, and なんか itself may be considered an adverbial particle. なんて is an extension of this, and may be considered an abbreviation of などという 'to say something like'.
Both なんか and なんて are used in the same way as など, having translations like 'such as', and 'things like' in English. The primary difference between なんか and なんて is that なんて is far more common after 用言 (conjugatable words). This includes verbs, い-Adjectives, and な-Adjectives. On the other hand, なんか is almost exclusively used after 体言 (unconjugatable words). In other words, nouns.
Despite the 体言 and 用言 tendency, most native speakers will not consider it incorrect to use either なんか or なんて with any type of word.
Fun Fact
Both なんか and なんて are often used to show a low evaluation of the word that they follow. This can come across as humility when used in relation to oneself, or as an insult when used in relation to others.- 私なんか5年間スペイン語の勉強をしているのにまだ全然会話ができないです。 (Humility)I have studied Spanish for 5 years, but I can't speak it at all yet.
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お前なんてどうせ、家でゴロゴロしているだけだろ。 (Insult)Someone like you probably just loafs around the house, don't you?
Don't let this point stop you from using なんか or なんて though, as many native speakers use it simply to fill the silence in modern Japanese.
- 酷いことを言ったのは分かるんだけど、なんか、情熱的になって言っちゃった。I am aware that I said something mean, but, you know, I said it because I got emotional.
Synonyms
って
As for, Speaking of, Casual は (Sentence topic marker)
Not studied yet
といった
Such as, Like, So much as
Not studied yet
など
Such as, Things like, Etc., And so on
Not studied yet
とか～とか
Among other things, For example, Such as
Not studied yet
こそ
For sure, For certain, Even more so, Underlined or bolded text
Not studied yet
Examples
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人生なんてそんなもんさ。
Such is life.
お世辞なんて大嫌いだ！
I hate things like flattery!
嘘なんかつかないよ。信じてよ。
I would never do something like lie to you. Trust me.
私が太っているなんて言わないで。
Don't say things like I am fat.
僕には道案内なんてできませんよ。
I am unable to do things like give directions.
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Online
How to use なんて
MaggieSensei
Learn Japanese through songs
Japanese Ammo [video]
The particle なんて
Imabi
Offline
Tae Kim's Grammar Guide
Page 199
Tobira
Page 90
[AIAIJ] An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese
Page 247
A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar
Page 339
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なんか・なんて – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (4 in total)
mrnoone
@Johnathan-Weir
Hey
Maggie sensei is right, while など and なんて are used with verbs and adjectives なんか is generally used with nouns and なadjectives (that also work as nouns).
I have fixed the grammar point accordingly. Sorry for the problem and thank you for noticing the error!
By the way, なんか is also used with て form of the verb in てなんかいない construction which is used for emphasis:
泣いてなんかいないぞ！目から汗が出たのさ！
I am not doing something like crying! It’s just my eyes sweating.Also, it is more common for なんか to be used with particles like に than なんて.
雨になんか負けないぞ！
I won’t lose to something like rain!
narfi
It might also be good to capture in the readings that this is covered in DAJG, page 339.
mrnoone
@narfi
Hey and welcome on the community forums!Added
Thanks for the feedback!
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