Ending a non-exhaustive list with "shenme de"
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Level
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Similar to
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Used for
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Keywords
什么的(shénme de) is an informal way to express "etc.", and used to end a list of items when it is obvious to the listener what class of things the speaker is talking about.It can also be used after a single item if it is obvious enough what might follow.
Structure
List + 什么的
Examples
- 欧洲 有 哪 些 国家? 法国，英国，德国 什么 的。 反正 都 是 些 小 国家！Which countries are in Europe? France, England, Germany, etc. Anyway, they are all small countries!
- 像 数学 啊，化学 啊，英语 啊 什么的，我 都 觉得 超级 无聊，不 想 学！Math, chemistry, English, and so on. I think they are all really boring. I don't want to study them!
- 游泳 啊 什么的 对 身体 有 好处。Swimming and such is good for the body.
It can be a little impolite to use 什么的 after a list of peoples names, in which case 等 can be used in place of 什么的. When referring to a list of friends in informal contexts there is no problem using 什么的.
