JLPT N5 · Particles
と (to)
と (to) — and / together with
In short · と joins nouns into a complete list ("A and B") and marks the person you do something with.
Pattern
-
A と BA and B (full list of nouns) -
〈person〉と V。do V together with someone
Listing nouns
と connects nouns into a complete list: パンと たまご (bread and eggs). Use it for nouns only — not to join two sentences.
Doing something together
と marks your companion in an action: ともだちと いきます (go with a friend).
A complete "and" (vs や)
と lists everything. For an open-ended list — "A, B, and so on" — Japanese uses や, but と is the N5 starting point for full lists.
Examples
-
パンと たまごを かいます。
Pan to tamago o kaimasu.
I buy bread and eggs.
と links the two nouns; を marks the whole list as the object.
-
ともだちと えいがを みます。
Tomodachi to eiga o mimasu.
I watch a movie with a friend.
-
かぞくと にほんへ いきます。
Kazoku to Nihon e ikimasu.
I go to Japan with my family.
Common mistakes
- と joins nouns, not sentences. To link verbs or clauses use the て-form or そして, not と.
- と is a complete "and". For an open list ("…and others") use や instead.
More grammar points
- は は (wa) — the topic particle
- を を (o) — the object particle
- に に (ni) — time, destination, location
- で で (de) — place of action & means
- の の (no) — possessive & noun linker
- へ へ (e) — direction
- も も (mo) — also / too
- か か (ka) — the question marker
- から から・まで — from … to …
- より より (yori) — than (comparison)
- だけ ～だけ — “only ～”
- で ～で — place, means and cause
- が ～が — marks the subject
- か か — the question particle
- まで ～まで — “until / up to ～”
- も ～も — “also / too”
- なあ ～なあ — sentence-final feeling
- ね ～ね — “..., right? / isn’t it?”
Practice this in the app
Mainichi JLPT turns these grammar points into daily quizzes and a readiness gauge — 100% free, no sign-up.