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たり~たりする・とか~とか: the difference

Meaning

Things like ~ and ~

Past papers

Tested 5 times in past papers

Example

家いえでゲームをしたり、食たべたりした。

At home, I did things like play video games and eat.

Meaning

Among other things, For example, Such as

Past papers

Tested 2 times in past papers

Example

青あおとか水色みずいろが好すき。

I like colors like blue and light blue.

How to tell them apart

「AやBなど」 mainly lists nouns and also fits writing and formal speech.

「~たり~たりする」 is for listing actions and states, and is the standard pattern on exams.

「とか~とか」 lists nouns or verbs and is the most casual; avoid stacking it in formal writing or business documents.

All about たり~たりする ›All about とか~とか ›