N4#verbs#past-tense#tari-form#experience

Past & Experience Lesson 2

Mastering the たり〜たり form to describe non-exhaustive lists of actions, and reinforcing the use of ことがある for life experiences.

Context

A Busy Weekend

Imagine you are catching up with a friend on Monday morning. They ask you what you did over the weekend. You didn't just do one thing; you did several activities, like cleaning, reading, and going to the store.

In Japanese, if you want to list several actions to describe your weekend, you cannot simply string them together with 'and'. Instead, we use a specific pattern to show that these are just some of the things you did.

Explanation

The たり〜たり Form

The たり〜たり form is used to list representative actions. It implies that these are not the only things you did, but they are the most notable ones.

[Verb-た]り、[Verb-た]りします

To form this, take the verb in its past 'ta-form', add り, and finish the sentence with します (or the appropriate tense of します). This structure is very useful for summarizing a variety of activities.

Tip

Always remember to add します at the end of the sentence. Without it, the sentence is incomplete.

Examples

Examples in Action

See how this grammar works in natural sentences.

週末(しゅうまつ)は本(ほん)を読んだり(よんだり)、映画(えいが)を見たり(みたり)しました。

On the weekend, I read books, watched movies, and did other things.

週末しゅうまつweekend本ほんbook読んだりよんだりread (and other things)映画えいがmovie見たりみたりwatched (and other things)

昨日は掃除を【したり、したり】、料理を【したり、したり】しました。

Hint: Use the ta-form of する + り

Yesterday, I cleaned, cooked, and did other things.

Usage

Nuance and Usage

How does this differ from just listing actions with 'and'?

Listing Actions

〜て、〜て

Sequence: Action A then Action B

本を読んで、寝ました。

〜たり、〜たり

Representative: A and B (and others)

本を読んだり、寝たりしました。

Which sentence implies you did more than just the two listed activities?

本を読んで、寝ました。
✓ 本を読んだり、寝たりしました。

The たり〜たり form suggests a non-exhaustive list of actions.

Deep dive

Deep Dive: Tense and Politeness

The final verb します determines the tense and politeness of the entire sentence.

You can change the final verb to match your needs. For example, if you are talking about your plans for the weekend, you can use します in the non-past tense (週末は本を読んだり、映画を見たりします). If you are speaking casually, you can use した instead of します.

Summary

Lesson Summary

The たり〜たり form is essential for describing a non-exhaustive list of actions. By using the past 'ta-form' plus り, you can effectively communicate that you were busy with various tasks without needing to list every single one.

週末

しゅうまつnoun

weekend

掃除

そうじnoun

cleaning

料理

りょうりnoun

cooking

映画

えいがnoun

movie