Did You Really Think 確かに and 確か Are The Same?
Could you explain the difference between “確かに” and “確か”? A lot of Japanese learners may think about the difference between them whether they have “に” or not. However, the meaning of them is different. Let me introduce what the difference between “確かに” and “確か” and how you correctly use them today!
確かに (tashikani)
Exactly / You’re right. / I agree with you.
“確かに” is “Exactly, You’re right and I agree with you.” which means “without discrepancy”, “without a doubt” and so on. Basically “確かに” is used as an answer, unlike “確か”. For instance, when someone said something and if you agree with him/her, you would say “確かに(Exactly.)”, “確かにそうだね(You’re right.)”, “確かにそうですね(I agree with you.)”, etc. When using it for your boss, “確かにそうですね(I agree with you.)” would better, whereas when using for your friends, “確かに(Exactly.)” and “確かにそうだね(You’re right.)” are better which are casual than “確かにそうですね”.






確か (tashika)
I think
“確か” means “I think” which has been used for people who think something not that clear. You would also say “確か” as “I guess” depending on the situations. The basic way to use “確か” is that native speakers use “確か___だっと思う”, “確か___のはず”, “確か___(だった/の)気がする” like these which are the absolutely same meaning. When using “確かに”, something is clear and when using “確か”, something is not that clear. That’s the difference between them.




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