LEARN + JAPANESE / Note 73 JLPT N5
This or That (か)
か between two nouns means “or,” offering a choice the same way と means “and.” It attaches directly to both nouns with nothing else needed.
I'll go by train or bus.
I'll drink coffee or vegetable juice.
In Real Life
か only offers a choice between things, not a choice between actions. Choosing between two verbs needs 〜たり〜たりする or a different construction entirely, this か is strictly for nouns standing in for each other.
I'll either email or call, one or the other.
Let's do it at either my place or Ken's apartment.
In Real Life
どちらか tacked on after the か pair spells out explicitly that a choice still needs to be made between them, “one of the two.” It’s not required, メールか電話をします already works fine, but どちらか makes the sentence read less like a vague list and more like a genuine either-or decision.
Vocabulary
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| train | |
| Yokohama | |
| snow | |
| to fall (rain, snow) | |
| usually, mostly | |
| barbecue | |
| scary story | |
| to borrow | |
| comic, manga | |
| vegetable | |
| fruit | |
| which (of two), where (polite) | |
| both | |
| choice, selection | |
| to be decided | |
| to hesitate, be undecided | |
| preference, liking | |
| unexpectedly | |
| combination | |
| candidate, option |