JLPT N5

や

And (non-exhaustive)

Structure

Noun や Noun

How it works

The particle や is used to list two or more nouns when the list is not exhaustive, implying that other similar items exist but are not mentioned. Unlike the particle と (which lists everything in a group), や acts like 'and among others' or 'A and B, for example.'

Examples

かばんの中に本やペンがあります。

There are books and pens (among other things) in the bag.

スーパーでりんごやバナナを買いました。

I bought apples and bananas (and other things as well) at the supermarket.

机の上にノートや消しゴムがあります。

There are notebooks and erasers (among other things) on the desk.

Common mistakes

Confusing や with と; using と implies the list is complete, while using や implies there are more items you aren't mentioning.

Tip

If you want to sound even more natural and emphasize that the list is incomplete, you can add など (meaning 'etcetera') after the last noun, like 'A や B など'.

More JLPT N5 grammar

はがをにでものと

See や in real Japanese

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