JLPT N5 · Particles

と (to)

と — “and” (nouns) and “with”

In short · と has two basic uses for beginners: it joins nouns like ‘and’ (パンと牛乳), and it marks a partner with whom you do something, like ‘with’ (母と行く). It attaches to nouns. It has other uses too (quoting, ‘if’), learned later.

A free study page from Mainichi JLPT — the app has 429+ grammar points, plus vocabulary and mock exams.See the app

Pattern

名詞A＋と＋名詞B noun A and noun B (complete list)
人＋と＋動詞 person + と + verb: do something with that person

‘And’ between nouns

A と B lists exactly the things named: パンと牛乳を買いました (bread and milk). It only connects nouns, not verbs or adjectives. For ‘and so on’, use や instead.

‘With’ a partner

Put と after the person you do something with: 母と買い物に行きます (I go shopping with my mother). To say you do it alone, use ひとりで. A partner must be someone who also takes part.

Other uses

と also marks quotations (～と言う) and conditions (春になると…). You will study these later; in this lesson focus on the two uses above.

Examples

私（わたし）と友達（ともだち）は公園（こうえん）へ行（い）きました。

Watashi to tomodachi wa kōen e ikimashita.

My friend and I went to the park.

と joins the two subjects, 私 and 友達.
パンと牛乳（ぎゅうにゅう）を買（か）いました。

Pan to gyūnyū o kaimashita.

I bought bread and milk.

Only these two items.
母（はは）と買（か）い物（もの）に行（い）きます。

Haha to kaimono ni ikimasu.

I go shopping with my mother.

と marks the person who goes together.

Common mistakes

と joins nouns only. To link verbs or adjectives, use the て-form instead.
と means a complete list. For examples among several, use や: パンや牛乳を買いました.

More grammar points

Practice this in the app

Mainichi JLPT turns these grammar points into daily quizzes and a readiness gauge — 100% free, no sign-up.

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

See the app