なら

Japanese

Etymology 1

Form of ならば (naraba) with its final mora deleted, treated as the conditional of だ (da) in traditional Japanese grammar.

Alternative forms

• ならば (naraba)

Particle

なら • (nara) 

1. A conditional particle appended to a noun or the plain form of a verb or adjective.

   暑(あつ)いなら、エアコンをつけて。

   Atsui nara, eakon o tsukete.

   If it's hot, turn on the air conditioner.

   君(きみ)が行(い)くなら僕(ぼく)も行(い)こう。

   Kimi ga iku nara boku mo ikō.

   If you go, I'll go too.

   適(てき)度(ど)な緊(きん)張(ちょう)ならいいが、過(か)度(ど)の緊(きん)張(ちょう)は脳(のう)の大(たい)敵(てき)だ。

   Tekido na kinchō nara ii ga, kado no kinchō wa nō no taiteki da.

   If it's just a moderate amount of nervousness, it can be good, but too much can be your worst enemy.

   辞(じ)書(しょ)なら ○○。

   Jisho nara ○○.

   If it's a dictionary you need, choose ○○. / ○○, the only dictionary you'll ever need.

2. A topic marker.

   花(はな)なら桜(さくら)だ。

   Hana nara sakura da.

   As for flowers, it is the cherry blossom.

   風(ふう)景(けい)ならスイスに及(およ)ぶ国(くに)はない。

   fūkei nara Suisu ni oyobu kuni wa nai.

   As for landscape, there isn't a country comparable to Switzerland.

Usage notes

• For 1., なら (nara) implies that the verb before なら (nara) succeeds the verb after なら (nara) in time. This is the opposite of the conditional particle たら (tara), which implies that the first verb will precede the second verb. Contrast:

  友(とも)達(だち)が来(く)るなら、私(わたし)はピザを注(ちゅう)文(もん)する。

  Tomodachi ga kuru nara, watashi wa piza o chūmon suru.

  If our friends come, I will order pizza [[[beforehand]]].

  友(とも)達(だち)が来(き)たら、私(わたし)はピザを注(ちゅう)文(もん)する。

  Tomodachi ga kitara, watashi wa piza o chūmon suru.

  If our friends come, I will order pizza [[[afterward]]].

  • Notice that a verb in the past tense is needed to use たら (tara). The ～た (~ta) from the past tense is replaced by たら (tara).
• Another well-known contrast between the two conditionals is the popular public service announcement:

  飲(の)んだら乗(の)るな。乗(の)るなら飲(の)むな。

  Nondara noru na. Noru nara nomu na.

  If you drink, don’t [then] drive. If you [are going to] drive, don’t drink.

See also

• なぜなら (nazenara)
• ならば (naraba)
• なる (naru)
• たら (tara)

Etymology 2

For pronunciation and definitions of なら – see the following entry.

【奈良】 [proper noun] a placename, especially: [proper noun] Short for 奈良県 (Nara-ken): Nara (a prefecture of Japan) [proper noun] Short for 奈良市 (Nara-shi): Nara (the capital city of Nara Prefecture) [proper noun] a surname Alternative spellings 寧楽, 平城

(This term, なら, is the hiragana spelling of the above term.) For a list of all kanji read as なら, see Category:Japanese kanji read as なら.)

Etymology 3

For pronunciation and definitions of なら – see the following entry.

【楢】J [noun] oak Alternative spelling ナラ

(This term, なら, is the hiragana spelling of the above term.) For a list of all kanji read as なら, see Category:Japanese kanji read as なら.)