〜やら〜やら yara ~ yara

〜やら〜やら（yara ~ yara）means “what with ~ and ~ (listing examples, often with a sense of trouble or excess)”. Lists two (or more) representative items or actions from among many, usually conveying that the situation is hectic, troublesome, or hard to sort out. Formation: V-る／Aい／Aな（だ抜き）／N ＋やら　…　＋やら

what with ~ and ~ (listing examples, often with a sense of trouble or excess)

N2

Formation

V-る／Aい／Aな（だ抜き）／N ＋やら　…　＋やら

Explanation

Lists two (or more) representative items or actions from among many, usually conveying that the situation is hectic, troublesome, or hard to sort out. Like 〜とか〜とか but with a stronger nuance of 'so many things going on'.

Examples

引っ越しの日は荷造りやら掃除やらで一日中ばたばたしていた。
ひっこしのひはにづくりやらそうじやらでいちにちじゅうばたばたしていた。
On moving day, what with packing and cleaning, I was rushing around all day long.
彼女は嬉しいやら恥ずかしいやらで、顔を真っ赤にしていた。
かのじょはうれしいやらはずかしいやらで、かおをまっかにしていた。
What with being happy and being embarrassed, she turned bright red in the face.

Note

Often ends with 〜で or 〜だった summing up the resulting state. With emotions (嬉しいやら悲しいやら) it shows mixed feelings.

FAQ

〜やら〜やら — what does it mean and how is it used?

what with ~ and ~ (listing examples, often with a sense of trouble or excess). Lists two (or more) representative items or actions from among many, usually conveying that the situation is hectic, troublesome, or hard to sort out. Like 〜とか〜とか but with a stronger nuance of 'so many things going on'.

〜やら〜やら — how do you form it?

V-る／Aい／Aな（だ抜き）／N ＋やら　…　＋やら

〜やら〜やら — any usage notes?

Often ends with 〜で or 〜だった summing up the resulting state. With emotions (嬉しいやら悲しいやら) it shows mixed feelings.

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