Nado in Japanese is mainly used in three ways, explained with examples

What is “nado” in Japanese?

“Nado” is an adverbial particle in the Japanese language. Native speakers use it mainly in the three different ways: to say “etc.”, “and so on”, or “and the like”; to show an example; to indicate a quote. In this blog post, I will explain this particle in detail with three example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “nado” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

• “Nado” to say “etc.”, “and so on”, or “and the like” in Japanese
  • Example #1: how to say “and so on” in Japanese
• “Nado” to show an example
  • Example #2: how to show an example with “nado”
• “Nado” to indicate a quote
  • Example #3: how to show a quote with “nado”
• Summary: “nado” in Japanese

“Nado” to say “etc.”, “and so on”, or “and the like” in Japanese

Let me start with “nado” used to say “etc.”, “and so on”, or “and the like” in Japanese.

• nado – 等 (など) : an adverbial particle used after the set of words meaning similar things to say “etc.”, “and so on”, “and the like”, or such in Japanese.

Native speakers normally use this type of “nado” after the set of words meaning similar things and concepts to say “etc.”, “and so on”, “and the like”, or such in Japanese. In other words, this particle can help us to shorten the list of similar words. This particle has the kanji expression, but its hiragana expression is also very common. So, we don’t necessarily have to write it in kanji. It’s also worth mentioning here that native speakers sometimes use this adverb twice: “nadonado”. This use is found especially in speaking.

Then, let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

Example #1: how to say “and so on” in Japanese

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “watashi” to make the subject word in the sentence.
• nihon – 日本 (にほん) : a noun meaning ‘Japan’ in Japanese.
• de – で : a case particle used to say where someone does something. In the example, this is used after “nihon” to say where the speaker went to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and so on.
• tokyo – 東京 (とうきょう) : a noun meaning ‘Tokyo’ in Japanese.
• kyoto – 京都 (きょうと) : a noun meaning ‘Kyoto’ in Japanese.
• osaka – 大阪 (おおさか) : a noun meaning ‘Osaka’ in Japanese.
• ni – に : a case particle used to say where someone or something goes. In the example, this is used after the set of the places to say where speaker went in Japan.
• it – 行っ (いっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “iku”, which means ‘to go’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese ta form. In the example, this is used after “it” to make its past tense form, “it ta”.

This is a typical usage of this type of “nado”. In this example, it works at the end of the set of the words referring to the places which the speaker went to. Due to its help, we can understand that the speaker went some places in Japan, but doesn’t mention all of them. When we want to shorten the list of words meaning similar things and concepts, “nado” is definitely helpful.

“Nado” to show an example

Next, let me explain “nado” used to show an example.

• nado – 等 (など) : an adverbial particle used after a noun or noun equivalent word to show an example.

This type of “nado” basically has the same concept as the first one does, I think. This helps us to pick one example from the group of similar things and concepts. And again, we don’t necessarily have to write this in kanji. Its hiragana expression is very common and acceptable.

Then, let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

Example #2: how to show an example with “nado”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• sapporo – 札幌 (さっぽろ) : a noun meaning ‘Sapporo’ in Japanese.
• hoka – 他 (ほか) : a noun meaning ‘other things’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this is used to join “hoka” and “basho”. The formed phrase literally means ‘other places’ in Japanese.
• basho – 場所 (ばしょ) : a noun meaning ‘place’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
• mo – も : a binding particle working to make the subject word or the object word with adding the meaning of ‘also’, ‘as well’, or ‘too’. In the example, this works after “hoka no basho” to make the object in the sentence with adding the meaning of ‘too’.
• iki – 行き (いき) : one conjugation of the verb, “iku”, which means ‘to go’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• mashi – まし : one conjugation of the auxiliary verb, “masu”, which is used after a verb to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese masu form. In the example, this is used “iki” to make it sound polite.
• ka – か : a sentence-ending particle used to make a question. As its definition suggests, this is used at the end of the example sentence to make the question.

This is a typical usage of this type of “nado”. In the example, it works after “sapporo” to show an example place which the listener possibly went to. In this case, “sapporo” can be considered as one example picked from the group of the other cities in Japan. The particle has been translated into English as “like”. When we want to pick an example from the group of similar things and concepts, this “nado” is very helpful.

“Nado” to indicate a quote

Lastly, let me explain “nado” used to indicate a quote, what someone has said.

• nado – 等 (など) : an adverbial particle working as a quote marker to indicate what someone has said.

Native speakers use this type of “nado” as a quote marker after a phrase or clause to indicate what someone has said. Unlike the other quote markers, this quote marker doesn’t necessarily have to refer to exactly the same thing as someone has said. When we don’t remember precisely what someone has said but want to refer to it, this quote marker is very helpful. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.

Example #3: how to show a quote with “nado”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
• ai shi – 愛し (あいし) : one conjugation of the verb, “ai suru”, which means ‘to love’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• te – て : a conjunctive particle used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its te form. In the example, this is used after “ai shi” to make its te form, “ai shi te”. Verbs need to be changed to their te forms to be connected with “iru”.
• iru – いる : an auxiliary verb used to express the continuity of the action described by the preceding verb. In the example, this is used after the te-formed verb, “ai shi te”, to express the continuity of its action, ‘to love’.
• iwa – 言わ (いわ) : one conjugation of the verb, “iu”, which means ‘to say’, ‘to tell’, or such in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• nakat – なかっ : one conjugation of the auxiliary verb, “nai“, which is used to deny the meaning of its preceding word. In the example, this is used after “iwa” to deny its meaning.

This is a typical usage of this type of “nado”. In the example, it works as a quote marker after the clause, “ai shi te iru”, to indicate almost what “kanojo” has said before.

Summary: “nado” in Japanese

In this blog post, I’ve explained the three different types of “nado”. Let me summarize them as follows.

• nado – 等 (など) : an adverbial particle used after the set of words meaning similar things to say “etc.”, “and so on”, “and the like”, or such in Japanese. Native speakers normally use this type of “nado” after the set of words meaning similar things and concepts to say “etc.”, “and so on”, “and the like”, or such in Japanese. In other words, this particle can help us to shorten the list of similar words.
• nado – 等 (など) : an adverbial particle used after a noun or noun equivalent word to show an example. This type of “nado” basically has the same concept as the first one does, I think. This helps us to pick one example from the group of similar things and concepts.
• nado – 等 (など) : an adverbial particle working as a quote marker to indicate what someone has said. Native speakers use this type of “nado” as a quote marker after a phrase or clause to indicate what someone has said before. Unlike the other quote markers, this quote marker doesn’t necessarily have to refer to exactly the same thing as someone has said. When we don’t remember precisely what someone has said before but want to refer to it, this quote marker is very helpful.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.