particle N3 common casualpolitewritten
などと — (saying / thinking) things like ~
などと
Builds on など
Meaning
- (saying / thinking) things like ~ — など + quotative と, citing speech or thought, often with disdain or dismissal
などと joins など ('and such') to the quotative と, attaching to what someone said or thought: 行きたくないなどと言う ('says things like he doesn't want to go'). The など adds a dismissive or trivialising shade — the speaker treats the quoted content as unworthy or surprising. It pairs with verbs of saying/thinking (言う・思う・考える). The casual spoken contraction is なんて.
Key sentence
彼は「興味がない」などと言っていた。
He was saying things like "I'm not interested."
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Quoted word / phrase / clause + などと + verb of saying/thinking | 〜 などと + 言う・思う | 無理だなどと / 知らなかったなどと |
Examples
もう二度と来ないなどと言ってしまった。
I ended up saying things like I'd never come again.
自分は悪くないなどと思っているのだろう。
He probably thinks things like it's not his fault.
成功するなどとは、誰も思わなかった。
No one imagined it would actually succeed.
Easily confused with
なんて なんて is the casual spoken contraction of などと; などと is the fuller, more neutral/written form, standard with verbs of saying and thinking. 〜と (quotative) Plain と quotes neutrally ('says that ~'); などと adds など's dismissive 'things like ~' colouring to the quote, implying the speaker finds it trivial or hard to credit.
Notes
- Often emphasised as などとは before a negative (成功するなどとは思わなかった), stressing 'never even thought such a thing'.
See などと in real sentences
Jengo shows などと the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in Jengo