誰の + Noun (Whose)
Ask whose something is.
Finding a lost item
Imagine you are in a classroom or an office and you find a pen lying on the floor. You want to return it to its owner, but you do not know who it belongs to. In Japanese, you can simply point to the object and ask a specific question to identify the owner.
すみません、これはだれのぺんですか？
すみません、これは誰のペンですか？
Excuse me, whose pen is this?
あ、それはたなかさんのぺんです。
あ、それは田中さんのペンです。
Oh, that is Tanaka-san's pen.
The possessive structure
To ask about possession, we use the question word 誰 (dare) followed by the possessive particle の (no), which connects the owner to the object.
Tip
Seeing it in action
Here are common ways to use this structure to identify objects.
それは誰の傘ですか？
Whose umbrella is that?
あれは誰の車ですか？
Whose car is that over there?
これは【誰の】本ですか？
Hint: Use the word for 'who' + the possessive particle.
Whose book is this?
Politeness and nuance
While 'dare' is standard, you might hear 'どなた' (donata) in very polite situations. Using 'dare' is perfectly fine for friends, classmates, and colleagues.
Dare vs. Donata
誰の (dare no)
Standard/Casual. Use with friends or peers.
誰のペンですか？
どなたの (donata no)
Polite/Formal. Use with superiors or customers.
どなたのペンですか？
Which form is more polite when asking a teacher?
- 誰の
- ✓ どなたの
どなた is the polite version of 誰 and is preferred when speaking to superiors.
Possessive chains
You can stack the particle の to show complex relationships.
Recap
To ask 'whose', use the pattern **誰の + [Noun]**. Remember that **の** connects the owner to the object, and **か** marks the sentence as a question.