っけ
kke
Casual suffix to confirm something
A casual sentence-final particle used to confirm or recall something, often with a sense of 'I forgot' or 'wasn't it?'.
How to form it
Attaches to the plain past tense of verbs, い-adjectives, and な-adjectives, or directly to nouns. For verbs, use the た-form (e.g., 行ったっけ, 食べたっけ). For adjectives, use the past form: かったっけ for い-adjectives, だったっけ for な-adjectives and nouns. Can also attach to the polite past form: でしたっけ.
What it means
っけ is a casual suffix you add when you're trying to remember something or double-check a fact with yourself or with someone you're close to. It often carries a feeling of 'Hmm, was it...?' or 'I can't quite recall, but...'. For example, if you're wondering what time the meeting was, you might say to yourself '会議は何時だっけ？' It's like thinking out loud or asking for confirmation in a light way. It's also used when you remember something from the past and want to confirm if it's true, like 'That test was hard, wasn't it?'
Example sentences
明日の約束、何時だっけ？
Ashita no yakusoku, nanji da kke?
What time was our appointment tomorrow again?
この映画、前に見たっけ？
Kono eiga, mae ni mita kke?
Did I watch this movie before?
あの先生、厳しかったっけ。
Ano sensei, kibishikatta kke.
That teacher was strict, wasn't he?
Don’t confuse it with
かな (ka na)
かな expresses uncertainty or wondering ('I wonder'), while っけ is specifically for trying to recall or confirm something you've forgotten. っけ often expects a yes/no or a specific answer, and is more like 'was it...?', whereas かな is more open-ended.
Check you’ve got it
Write your own sentence
The fastest way to own a grammar point is to use it once, about your own life. Your sentence is saved to your free account with this point.
Casual and spoken; used among friends, family, or people of similar status. Not used in formal writing or polite conversation with superiors unless as でしたっけ, which is still conversational but more polite.
Next in the N3 path
80Questions
What does っけ mean?
Casual suffix to confirm something. A casual sentence-final particle used to confirm or recall something, often with a sense of 'I forgot' or 'wasn't it?'.
How do you form っけ?
Attaches to the plain past tense of verbs, い-adjectives, and な-adjectives, or directly to nouns. For verbs, use the た-form (e.g., 行ったっけ, 食べたっけ). For adjectives, use the past form: かったっけ for い-adjectives, だったっけ for な-adjectives and nouns. Can also attach to the polite past form: でしたっけ.
Example of っけ in a sentence
明日の約束、何時だっけ？ — What time was our appointment tomorrow again?
かな (ka na) — what is the difference?
かな expresses uncertainty or wondering ('I wonder'), while っけ is specifically for trying to recall or confirm something you've forgotten. っけ often expects a yes/no or a specific answer, and is more like 'was it...?', whereas かな is more open-ended.
What JLPT level is っけ?
JLPT N3 (intermediate), number 79 of 182 in Nihoner's learning order for N3.
Save your grammar
Create a free account and everything you saved will be waiting — with your progress on every JLPT grammar point.
Free · no card · what you saved is kept