니

Gentle plain question to a junior

A plain question ending with a soft, affectionate edge — what an adult uses with a child, a teacher with a student, an older friend with a younger one: what do you think?, do you remember the day we first met?, what time do you wake up?. It is not polite, but it is not rough either. Compare 냐, which asks the same question far more bluntly; 니 sounds caring where 냐 sounds curt.

Register: plain speech, older to younger