You use this to ask yourself a gentle question. It means 'I wonder...' in English.
Clause + かしらPrimary
Noun + かしら
い-Adjective + かしら
な-Adjective + かしら
You use this to ask yourself a gentle question. It means 'I wonder...' in English.
このドレス、私に似合うかしら。
I wonder if this dress suits me.
彼はもう来ないかしら。
I wonder if he's not coming anymore.
あら、鍵はどこに置いたかしら。
Oh my, I wonder where I put the key.
お客様はもうお帰りになったかしら。
I wonder if the guests have left already.
明日は晴れるかしらと思って、傘を持ってこなかったの。
Wondering if it would be sunny tomorrow, I didn't bring an umbrella.
You use 〜かしら to ask yourself a question. It is like saying 'I wonder' in English. You do not use it to ask other people things. For that, you would use 〜か or 〜ですか.
Both "~kashira" and "~kana" mean "I wonder." "~Kashira" is mostly used by women. "~Kana" is used by anyone. "~Kana" is more common now. Other words like "~no" or "~wa" are also used by women. But "~kashira" is only for questions. "~No" can explain things. "~Wa" can state things strongly.
Use this when you want to sound like you are wondering about something. It is a gentle way to ask yourself a question. People used to think it was mostly for women. Now, it sounds a bit old-fashioned. You might hear older women use it. Or you might hear it in stories. It can make a character sound fancy or traditional.
Contrasts with(2)
Track your mastery
Kumi's KMT system tracks your mastery across kanji, vocabulary, grammar, and reading. Create a free account to use it on 220,000+ concepts.