adverbial N3 common casualpolitewritten
なんと — how ~! / would you believe ~!
なんと
Meaning
① how ~! / what a ~! (exclamation): how ~! / what (a) ~! — exclaims over a degree, a bit more formal/literary than なんて
② amazingly / would you believe (surprise marker): amazingly / believe it or not / no less than ~ — flags the next fact as astonishing
なんと has two related exclamatory jobs. Before an adjective it means 'how ~!' (like a more formal なんて). Standing alone before a fact, it primes the listener for something surprising — 'amazingly / would you believe'. Both share a tone of being struck by something; the second often pairs with も or a number for emphasis (なんと〜も).
Key sentence
① how ~! / what a ~! (exclamation)
なんと美しい景色だろう。
What a beautiful view!
② amazingly / would you believe (surprise marker)
優勝者は、なんと十歳の少年だった。
The winner was — believe it or not — a ten-year-old boy.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Adverbial; before an adjective phrase or a whole clause | なんと + Aい(だろう) / なんと、+ clause | なんと立派な / なんと三回も |
Examples
① how ~! / what a ~! (exclamation)
なんとすばらしい演奏でしょう。
What a wonderful performance!
なんと言ったらいいか分からない。
I don't know how to put it.
② amazingly / would you believe (surprise marker)
値段はなんと一万円もした。
The price was a whopping 10,000 yen.
なんと、彼が会社を辞めたらしい。
Get this — apparently he quit the company.
Easily confused with
なんて (exclamatory) Same 'how ~!' exclamation; なんて is the casual spoken form, なんと slightly more formal/written — and only なんと doubles as the 'believe it or not' surprise-flag before a fact. なんとか Don't confuse: なんと (exclamation/surprise) vs なんとか ('somehow, manage to'). Different words despite the shared start.
Notes
- なんという + noun ('what (a) ~') is the related noun-phrase exclamation: なんという偶然 ('what a coincidence').
See なんと in real sentences
Jengo shows なんと the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in Jengo