Meaning & Usage
たり〜たり (tari〜tari) appears constantly in natural Japanese. It lets you mention a few representative actions or states — giving your listener a general picture without claiming you've listed everything. The closest English equivalent is do things like A and B or A, B, and so on.
Non-exhaustive is the key word. When a Japanese speaker says 映画を見たり、買い物したりします, they are not claiming that movies and shopping are the only things they do. The たり〜たり structure signals that other activities exist in the background — the speaker is selecting two to give a general flavor. This is the key difference from how English speakers tend to list activities one-by-one.
Compare this to the て-form (〜て) connector, which describes a strict sequence of events in a specific order. 起きて、歯を磨いて、朝ごはんを食べました means I woke up, brushed my teeth, and ate breakfast — a precise series in that exact order. By contrast, 音楽を聞いたり、本を読んだりします means I do things like listen to music and read books — casual, representative, with no implied order and no claim of completeness.
A second function is describing alternating or fluctuating states. When something keeps shifting back and forth — rain that starts and stops, emotions that rise and fall, weather that won't make up its mind — たり〜たり captures that back-and-forth quality precisely. 雨が降ったり止んだりしている vividly conveys rainfall repeatedly starting and stopping. This usage is especially common in weather descriptions and emotional contexts.
たり〜たり works in both formal and informal speech. The register is controlled entirely by how you conjugate the する at the end: します or しました for polite speech, する or した for casual speech. In very informal conversation the final する is occasionally dropped, but this can sound incomplete — not a habit worth picking up at the N5 stage.
Two items is the standard form, but you can list three or more by adding extra たり blocks before the final する. Using たり with a single verb (〜たりする) is also valid — it implies you're giving just one example from a wider range of activities.
Structure & Formation
The fundamental structure of this pattern is:
[Verb た-form] + り + [Verb た-form] + り + する (conjugated for tense and formality)
To build the pattern, follow these steps:
- Take your verb and conjugate it to its past tense (た-form).
- Add り directly after the た-form.
- Repeat with a second verb.
- End the entire pattern with する, conjugated to match tense and politeness.
Here is how different verb groups form the たり version:
| Verb Type | Dictionary Form | た-form | たり Form |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group 1 (u-verb) | 飲む | 飲んだ | 飲んだり |
| Group 1 (u-verb) | 書く | 書いた | 書いたり |
| Group 1 (u-verb) | 話す | 話した | 話したり |
| Group 2 (ru-verb) | 食べる | 食べた | 食べたり |
| Group 2 (ru-verb) | 見る | 見た | 見たり |
| Irregular | する | した | したり |
| Irregular | くる | きた | きたり |
Adjectives and nouns can also be used, though verb usage is by far the most common at the N5 level:
- い-adjectives: Remove い, add かった, then り — 高い → 高かったり
- な-adjectives: Add だったり — 静かだ → 静かだったり
- Nouns + だ: Add だったり — 学生だ → 学生だったり
The final する must always be conjugated. Common forms: する (plain present), します (polite present), した (plain past), しました (polite past), している (plain progressive), しています (polite progressive), したい (plain desiderative), したいです (polite desiderative).
Example Sentences
Everyday Activities
週末は映画を見たり、買い物したりします。
Shūmatsu wa eiga wo mitari, kaimono shitari shimasu.
On weekends, I do things like watch movies and go shopping.
公園で走ったり、歩いたりしました。
Kōen de hashittari, aruitari shimashita.
I did things like run and walk in the park.
友達と話したり、ゲームをしたりしました。
Tomodachi to hanashitari, gēmu wo shitari shimashita.
I did things like talk with friends and play games.
Alternating States and Emotions
天気が良かったり、悪かったりします。
Tenki ga yokattari, warukattari shimasu.
The weather keeps alternating between good and bad.
子供は泣いたり、笑ったりしています。
Kodomo wa naitari, warattari shite imasu.
The child keeps crying and laughing.
彼の気持ちは上がったり、下がったりする。
Kare no kimochi wa agattari, sagattari suru.
His feelings keep going up and down.
Learning and Work
日本語を読んだり、書いたりするのは難しいです。
Nihongo wo yondari, kaitari suru no wa muzukashii desu.
Doing things like reading and writing Japanese is difficult.
仕事で電話をかけたり、メールを送ったりします。
Shigoto de denwa wo kaketari, mēru wo okuttari shimasu.
At work, I do things like make phone calls and send emails.
音楽を聞いたり、本を読んだりするのが好きです。
Ongaku wo kiitari, hon wo yondari suru no ga suki desu.
I like doing things like listening to music and reading books.
Food and Daily Routine
朝ごはんはパンを食べたり、ご飯を食べたりします。
Asagohan wa pan wo tabetari, gohan wo tabetari shimasu.
For breakfast, I sometimes eat bread and sometimes eat rice.
家で料理したり、外食したりします。
Ie de ryōri shitari, gaishoku shitari shimasu.
I sometimes cook at home and sometimes eat out.
図書館で勉強したり、休んだりしました。
Toshokan de benkyō shitari, yasundari shimashita.
I did things like study and rest at the library.
Wishes and Memories
最近、運動したりしていますか？
Saikin, undō shitari shite imasu ka?
Do you do things like exercise these days?
夏休みに海へ行ったり、山に登ったりしたいです。
Natsuyasumi ni umi e ittari, yama ni nobottari shitai desu.
During summer vacation, I want to do things like go to the beach and climb mountains.
子供の頃、外で遊んだり、絵を描いたりしました。
Kodomo no koro, soto de asondari, e wo kaitari shimashita.
When I was a child, I used to do things like play outside and draw pictures.
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Forgetting the Final する
❌ 週末は映画を見たり、買い物したり。
✅ 週末は映画を見たり、買い物したりします。
The pattern must always end with する or one of its conjugated forms. That final する closes the structure and carries all tense and politeness information for the sentence. Without it, the sentence sounds abrupt and unfinished. Native speakers will probably follow your meaning, but the error is noticeable — fix this habit early.
Mistake 2: Using the Dictionary Form Instead of the た-form
❌ 映画を見るり、買い物するりします。
✅ 映画を見たり、買い物したりします。
The り in this pattern attaches to the た-form of the verb, never the dictionary form. Beginners often skip the conversion and attach り directly to the plain form — the result is ungrammatical. Always convert first: 見る → 見た → 見たり; する → した → したり.
Mistake 3: Mixing て-form and たり Form Within the Same List
❌ 映画を見たり、本を読んで、音楽を聞いたりします。
✅ 映画を見たり、本を読んだり、音楽を聞いたりします。
Every verb in a たり〜たり list must use the たり form — no mixing in て-form connectors partway through. Each action gets its own たり, and the whole list closes with one する at the end.
Mistake 4: Using たり〜たり for Strict Sequential Actions
❌ 朝、起きたり、歯を磨いたり、朝ごはんを食べたりします。
✅ 朝、起きて、歯を磨いて、朝ごはんを食べます。
For routines that follow a fixed, specific order, use the て-form. たり〜たり implies the listed items are a loose sample from a larger unordered set. When order matters and the list is complete, て-form is the right tool.
Mistake 5: Using たり〜たり to Imply an Exhaustive List
❌ 昨日の全ての予定は勉強したり、食べたりしました。(Intending to claim this covers everything)
✅ 昨日は勉強したり、食べたりしました。(Naturally understood as examples)
This is more of a conceptual trap than a surface-level error. Because たり〜たり is inherently non-exhaustive, native speakers will read it as a sample — not a full report. If you need to convey that two actions were truly all you did, restructure the sentence rather than reaching for たり〜たり.
Cultural Notes
In everyday conversation, たり〜たり is one of the most natural ways to describe how you spend your time. Ask a Japanese speaker 最近何をしていますか (What have you been up to lately?) and a fluent answer almost always uses this pattern. It carries a relaxed, unhurried tone — the verbal equivalent of oh, this and that. Use it well and you'll sound noticeably more at ease; Japanese speakers notice this quickly in a learner.
There's a cultural dimension here too. たり〜たり reflects a wider preference in Japanese communication for not making absolute claims. By using it, the speaker quietly acknowledges they're offering a sample, not the full picture. This kind of communicative modesty runs through everyday conversation, workplace small talk, and even formal writing — it's part of why the pattern appears so often.
Japanese television — travel shows and variety programs especially — relies heavily on たり〜たり when wrapping up experiences. 観光したり、地元の料理を食べたりしました (We did things like sightsee and eat local food) conveys richness and activity without enumerating every detail, keeping the narration lively and natural.
The alternating-state usage — 雨が降ったり止んだりしている — turns up constantly in weather talk and emotional descriptions. Japanese pays close attention to gradation and change, and たり〜たり gives you a clean, precise way to name that back-and-forth without reaching for complex vocabulary.
Related Grammar Points
- つもり — Intend To, Plan To (Grammar N5)
- と思う — I Think That (Grammar N5)
- もらう — To Receive (Grammar N5)
- たことがある — Have Done Before (Grammar N5)
- ながら — While Doing Two Things at Once (Grammar N5)
- もう — Already, Not Anymore, One More (Grammar N5)
JLPT Tips
On the JLPT N5 exam, たり〜たり shows up mainly in listening comprehension and reading passages. In listening sections, speakers describe weekends, hobbies, and daily routines using this pattern. Train your ear to catch the repeated り sounds and the する or します that closes the structure — those are the reliable audio signals that たり〜たり is in play.
Grammar multiple-choice questions often pit the て-form against the たり form for the same blank. The call is usually straightforward: does the sentence describe a strict sequence of events (て-form) or a representative sample with no fixed order (たり〜たり)? Context words like 週末に (on weekends) or 最近 (lately) almost always point to たり〜たり, since they describe habitual patterns rather than one-time sequences.
Watch the verb form that appears before り. The correct form is always the た-form. Any answer choice offering the dictionary form, the て-form, or the ます-form before り is wrong. Drill your た-form conjugations across all three verb groups — Group 1, Group 2, and the two irregulars — until you can rule out bad options without hesitating.
Watch what comes after the final り as well. The する that follows must match the overall tense of the sentence — した or しました for past events, する or します for habitual or present actions. Tense mismatch is a quiet error type that surfaces in both grammar and reading sections.
At N5, the exam almost exclusively tests the standard two-item form. Nail the fundamentals: correct た-form conversion, たり after each verb, and the right conjugation of the final する. That covers what the test actually asks.