Practice JLPTHow to tell them apart
や and とか both list items as non-exhaustive examples, but や is a particle attached between nouns (ビールやワイン), while とか can also list verbs and adjectives (聞くとか読むとか). など does not connect items; it attaches to a single noun to mean
- や Use や to link two nouns as a non-exhaustive list before the object particle.
- とか Use とか to list actions or states as examples, not just nouns.
- など Use など to attach to one noun and mean things like it.
| Grammar point | Meaning | JLPT level |
|---|---|---|
| や ya | And; or (non-exhaustive listing particle) | N5 |
| とか toka | And; or; something like (listing) | N4 |
| など nado | And so on / etc. | N5 |
や ya
And; or (non-exhaustive listing particle)
And | A coordinate conjunction that is used to list two or more items (nouns or noun phrases) in an inexhaustive fashion
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僕はビールやワインを飲んだ。
I drank beer, wine and other things like that.
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土田さんは 大川さんや鈴木さんに手紙を書いた。
Mr. Tsuchida wrote a letter to Mr. Okawa and Mr. Suzuki (and others).
とか toka
And; or; something like (listing)
And; or | A conjunction that lists two or more items, actions or states as inexhaustive examples.
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A:どんな日本の映画を見ましたか。 B: 黒沢 の「七人の侍」とか「生きる」とか 「影武者」を見ました。
A: What kind of Japanese movie did you see? B: I saw Kurosawa's Seven Samurai, Ikiru and Kagemusha.
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A:日曜日にはどんなことをしていますか。 B:音楽を聞くとか、本を読むとかしています。
A: What sorts of things do you do on Sundays? B: I do things like listening to music or reading books.
など nado
And so on / etc.
And so on; and the like; for example; things like ~ | A marker that indicates exemplification.
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A:この翻訳をして下さいませんか。 B:こんな難しいもの、私などには出来ません。
A: Could you kindly translate this for me? B: A person like me cannot translate such a difficult thing.
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A:冬休みはどこに行きましょうか。 B:ハワイなどどうですか。
A: Where shall we go during the winter vacation? B: How about Hawaii, for example?
や and とか and など are JLPT N5–N4 grammar points that Japanese learners often mix up. This page compares all 3 side by side — meanings, usage and example sentences — so you can tell them apart.