Introduction
You name two or three things and cannot be bothered to finish the list. Chinese tacks 什么的 (shénme de) on the end: 我买了苹果、香蕉什么的。(Wǒ mǎi le píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de.) — I bought apples, bananas and so on.
Overview
Structure: A、B (+ C) + 什么的 (shénme de)
| Pattern | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| A、B + 什么的 | 我买了苹果、香蕉什么的。(Wǒ mǎi le píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de.) | I bought apples, bananas and so on. |
| One item + 什么的 | 喝点儿茶什么的。(Hē diǎnr chá shénme de.) | Have some tea or something. |
| Verb phrases | 看书、看电影什么的。(Kàn shū, kàn diànyǐng shénme de.) | Reading, films, that sort of thing. |
| As a fronted topic | 苹果、香蕉什么的，我都喜欢。(Píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de, wǒ dōu xǐhuan.) | Apples, bananas — I like them all. |
| 等 (written) | 苹果、香蕉等水果 (píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo děng shuǐguǒ) | fruit such as apples and bananas |
什么的 (shénme de) closes the list, and nothing follows it inside the list:
- ✓ 苹果、香蕉什么的 (píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de) ❌ 什么的苹果、香蕉 (shénme de píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo)
- The items are separated by the list comma 、(dùnhào), not by 和 (hé): ✓ 苹果、香蕉 ❌ 苹果和香蕉什么的.
- One item is enough. With only one, it means "or something like that": 喝点儿茶什么的。(Hē diǎnr chá shénme de.)
- It is spoken. In writing the same job is done by 等 (děng): 苹果、香蕉等水果 (píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo děng shuǐguǒ).
Examples
我买了苹果、香蕉什么的。
Wǒ mǎi le píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de.
I bought apples, bananas, that sort of thing.
周末我看看书、看看电影什么的。
Zhōumò wǒ kànkan shū, kànkan diànyǐng shénme de.
At weekends I read a bit, watch a film, that kind of thing.
喝点儿茶什么的吧。
Hē diǎnr chá shénme de ba.
Have some tea or something.
他喜欢运动，打球、跑步什么的。
Tā xǐhuan yùndòng, dǎ qiú, pǎobù shénme de.
He likes sport — ball games, running, that sort of thing.
桌子上放着书、手机什么的。
Zhuōzi shang fàng zhe shū, shǒujī shénme de.
There are books, a phone and so on lying on the table.
苹果、香蕉什么的，我都喜欢。
Píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de, wǒ dōu xǐhuan.
Apples, bananas — I like all of them.
Usage Notes
- The 的 (de) is neutral tone and the whole thing runs together as shénme de. It is not a question, despite the 什么 (shénme) in it.
- It works on nouns and on verb phrases alike: 苹果、香蕉什么的 (píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de)、看书、看电影什么的 (kàn shū, kàn diànyǐng shénme de).
- With a single item it softens the suggestion, much as "or something" does in English.
- The list it closes can still be the subject or the object of the sentence: 苹果、香蕉什么的，我都喜欢。(Píngguǒ, xiāngjiāo shénme de, wǒ dōu xǐhuan.)
- Keep it out of anything formal. 等 (děng) is the written equivalent and takes the category noun after it: 等水果 (děng shuǐguǒ).