N1 Conditions, Dependencies, and Consequences

~か否いなか: meaning, usage and examples

~か否いなか means: whether or not.

Updated 9 November 2026 · By the My Senpai team · Spotted a mistake? Tell us

Examples

1. 参加さんかするか否いなか、今週中こんしゅうじゅうに決きめてください。

   Please decide whether or not to participate by the end of this week.

2. それが事実じじつか否いなか、私わたしには判断はんだんできない。

   I cannot judge whether that is a fact or not.

3. 工事こうじを続つづけるか否いなかは、来月らいげつの調査ちょうさ結果けっかで決きまる。

   Whether or not construction continues will be decided by next month's survey results.

4. 彼かれが犯人はんにんか否いなかを示しめす証拠しょうこは、まだ見みつかっていない。

   No evidence has been found yet showing whether or not he is the culprit.

When to use it

Means "whether or not." It is the formal written version of かどうか and appears in news, reports, official documents and formal speech. For example, 工事こうじを続つづけるか否いなかは来月らいげつ決きまる (whether or not construction continues will be decided next month). It is followed by verbs like 決きめる, 判断はんだんする, 分わからない or by は / が / を.

Nuance

Formal and stiff. In casual conversation it sounds bookish, so people say かどうか instead. With nouns and な-adjectives, だ is dropped: 事実じじつか否いなか, not 事実じじつだか否いなか. 否いな is read いな.

Compare

かどうか is the everyday equivalent: 行いくかどうか迷まよっている. か否いなか is the written version: 参加さんかするか否いなかを回答かいとうしてください. Also compare や否いなや, which means "as soon as" (ドアを開あけるや否いなや走はしり出だした) and has nothing to do with "whether."

Tip: Swap か否いなか for かどうか and the meaning stays the same. Do not confuse it with や否いなや: か否いなか = whether, や否いなや = as soon as.