adverbial N5 common casualpolitewritten

どう — how / in what way

どう

Meaning

Key sentence

How do you write this kanji?

Usage

An adverb — it stands before a verb (どう思おもう?) or alone with です (どうですか?). Nothing conjugates.

Examples

How's the new job?
What should we do now?
How about some coffee?

Easily confused with

どんな どう asks how / in what way — about a manner or state, before a verb or with です. どんな asks what kind of — about the quality of a noun (どんな本ほん). どうして どうして is specifically the 'why' question; どう on its own is 'how / in what way / how about'.

Notes

See どう in real sentences

Jengo shows どう the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.

Study it in Jengo

Sources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar.

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