Page 525 - Basic Japanese

as usual) with the meaning ‘maybe, perhaps, it may be

that.’ Here are some examples of ka mo shirenai:

Ano hito wa Nihon-jin ka mo shiremasen.
He may be Japanese.

Ame ga furu ka mo shirenai kara kasa o motte ikimashō.
It may rain, so let’s take an umbrella.

Ashita wa samui ka mo shiremasen ne.
It may be cold tomorrow.

Kuruma yori chikatetsu no hō ga benri ka mo shiremasen

yo.
Subways may be more convenient than cars.

Ōsaka e ittara Matsumoto-san ni aeru ka mo shiremasen.
I may be able to see Mr. Matsumoto if I go to
Osaka.

Yōko-san wa amari ureshiku nakatta ka mo shiremasen.

Yoko may not have been happy.

10.20. ka shira

The expression ka shira is added to predicates in the same
sort of way as ka mo shirenai, but the meaning is a little

different: ‘I wonder if.’ This is very similar to the meaning of