N2 Intention and Determination

~ようか~まいか: meaning, usage and examples

~ようか~まいか means: whether to... or not...

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

Examples

1. 行いこうか行いくまいか、迷まよっている。

   I'm undecided whether to go or not.

2. 話はなそうか話はなすまいか、悩なやんでいる。

   I'm agonizing over whether to tell or not.

3. この仕事しごとを引ひき受うけようか引ひき受うけまいか、まだ決きめられない。

   I still can't decide whether to take on this job or not.

4. パーティーに参加さんかしようかするまいか、一晩中ひとばんじゅう考かんがえた。

   I spent all night thinking about whether to go to the party or not.

When to use it

Describes hesitating between doing something and not doing it. The same verb is repeated in the volitional form and the まい form, followed by verbs like 迷まよう, 悩なやむ or 考かんがえる. For example, 行いこうか行いくまいか迷まよっている means "I can't decide whether to go or not."

Nuance

Slightly literary but also heard in speech. It shows the speaker's own indecision or a third person's. It is always followed by a verb of hesitation or thinking, not by a decision.

Compare

かどうか is the everyday way to say "whether or not": 行いくかどうか迷まよっている. ようかまいか stresses the struggle between two choices: 言いおうか言いうまいか悩なやんだ. かどうか can also be used for facts about others: 来くるかどうか分わからない; ようかまいか cannot, because it is about your own choice.

Tip: Use the same verb twice: volitional first, まい second. Do not swap まい for ない here: learn 行いこうか行いくまいか as the fixed shape of this pattern.