Grammar JLPT Level N4 - Lesson 15

The expression なん + counter + か in Japanese is a way of highlighting an uncertain number of something, and comes across similarly to 'some', 'several', or 'a few' in English. Literally, the meaning is much closer to 'what + counter + I wonder?', as it shows the speaker's uncertainty about the number.

• そこには何(なん)回(かい)か行(い)ったことがあると思(おも)う。
  I think I have been there several times.
• ごめん、紙(かみ)を何(なん)枚(まい)かちょうだい。
  Sorry, may I have some paper?

In addition to なん; いく, from the kanji 幾(いく) (how many/much) may be used as part of this construction. While both are fairly common, 幾(いく) is more common as part of set expressions, like 幾(いく)ら (how much) and 幾(いく)つ (how many/old), while なん is more common for counting specific things, like people.

• この車(くるま)はいくらですか？
  How much is this car?
• マリちゃんは幾(いく)つになったの？
  How old did Mari-chan turn?

Both 何(なん) and 幾(いく) are regularly seen in plain hiragana and their kanji forms, so it is worth remembering both.