GRAMMAR
なにやら
something
some kind of
Explanation
NOTE
なにやら means somehow or something or other — a vague adverb for an unspecified thing or feeling.
彼はなにやら考えているようだ。
He seems to be thinking about something or other.
Used to describe something the speaker senses but cannot identify clearly.
NOTE
It often conveys a mysterious or hard-to-define impression — the speaker can't quite put it into words.
NOTE
Place なにやら at the start of a sentence or just before the verb/adjective it modifies.
STRUCTURE
なにやら+V / Adj / clause
外でなにやら音がする。
Soto de naniyara oto ga suru.
There's some sort of sound outside.
なにやら不安な気持ちになった。
Naniyara fuan na kimochi ni natta.
I started to feel somehow uneasy.
彼女はなにやら嬉しそうだ。
Kanojo wa naniyara ureshisou da.
She looks somehow happy.
Practice exercises
1
隣の部屋から何やら変な風に話し声がする。
From the next room, there is some kind of strange talking.
Answer
何やらなにやら
2
何やら良くない気がして、気になり抜いた。
I had some kind of bad feeling and worried completely.
Answer
何やらなにやら
3
庭で何やら騒がしい声がする。
I hear something noisy in the garden.
Answer
何やらなにやら
4
部屋の雰囲気が何やら変わったようだ。
The atmosphere in the room seems to have changed somehow (something).
Answer
何やらなにやら
5
彼は何やら寂しげにしている。
He seems to be something sad.
Answer
何やらなにやら