どなた

ど

な

た

Common wordJLPTN5Freq.FrequencyTop 10,000

Meanings

pronoun

who

usually written using kana alonehonorific or respectful (sonkeigo)

Polite, honorific pronoun for 'who'. Used when asking about or referring to someone respectfully. More formal than だれ.

あちらにいらっしゃるのはどなたですか。
Who is that person over there?
どなたかお手伝てつだいいただけませんか。
Could someone please help me?

Usage patterns

どなたですかpolite way to ask 'Who is it?' or 'Who are you?'
失しつ礼れいですが、どなたですか。
Excuse me, but who are you?

Kanji

何what
方direction, person, alternative

Related words

どちらN5
どちら politely asks 'which one/direction' and can stand in for a person in formal contexts, while どなた is used specifically and directly to ask 'who'.

Politeness

誰だれplainN5
だれ is the plain, everyday word for 'who', while どなた is its polite, honorific counterpart used to address or refer to someone respectfully.

Don't confuse with

どなたか
何方 (どなた) is the honorific question word meaning 'who', while どなたか adds か to mean 'someone (unspecified)'.

Word family

どなたか
someone (honorific)
どなたでも
anyone; whoever; any person

Written forms

どなたUsage100%
It is usually written in kana. The kanji spelling 何方 is rare and may be confused with other readings.
何方どなたUsage<1%
Kanji spelling is uncommon and can be read as どちら or いずかた; learners should use the kana form.

Etymology

Derived from the interrogative prefix ど (which) and 方 (かた, person), with sound change from どかた to どなた. The kanji spelling 何方 is ateji.

どなた

ど

な

た