のやら / ものやら / ことやら means I wonder…; unsure; I don’t know ~. It’s a JLPT N1 grammar pattern that wraps a question in uncertainty—you’re not asking for an answer; you’re acknowledging that you don’t know, often with a touch of resignation or literary flair.
This set appears mostly in written Japanese, old-fashioned speech, or self-directed musing. If you want to sound reflective or rhetorical rather than interrogative, these endings are precise tools to learn.
What does のやら / ものやら / ことやら mean?
Use のやら / ものやら / ことやら when you want to express that you wonder about something — not to get a reply, but to voice your own uncertainty. The three endings differ in what type of thing you’re wondering about:
- のやら — for verbs and adjectives, asking “I wonder what / how …” (abstract, general wonder)
- ものやら — for concrete objects: “I wonder what thing …”
- ことやら — for abstract matters or events: “I wonder what affair …”
Natural English equivalents include “I wonder…”, “I’m not sure…”, “who knows…”, or “I have no idea…” — but the best match depends on sentence tone.
How to form のやら / ものやら / ことやら
The pattern always ends the sentence (or appears as an embedded question). It follows a wh-question word plus the phrase that makes the question, capped by the appropriate yara ending.
Examples of common chunks:
- どうしたのやら
- どこに置いたのやら
- 誰のものやら
- 何のことやら
- いつのことやら
When the question word itself is the subject (e.g., 何が起きた), you still place the appropriate yara after the whole phrase: 何が起きたのやら.
When is のやら / ものやら / ことやら used?
Use these endings in situations like:
- talking to yourself, or writing a reflective diary entry
- expressing that you genuinely don’t know something and feel it may stay unknown
- giving a rhetorical flourish in a literary, old-fashioned, or formal style
Tone and register:
- formal to archaic; heavy in novels, essays, and set phrases
- rarely used in everyday conversation (そこでは「かね」「だろうね」などに置き換わる)
- appears on JLPT N1 reading sections and in advanced comprehension
のやら / ものやら / ことやら example sentences
After each sentence, ask: what kind of uncertainty — abstract action, concrete object, or abstract situation? The answer tells you which yara fits.
Nuance of のやら / ものやら / ことやら
The core nuance is self-directed uncertainty, often with a resigned or poetic tone.
This is not a pattern you use to ask someone a real question; it’s for expressing that you don’t know. The feeling can be:
- mild bewilderment (“どうしたものかしら” softened)
- gentle lament (“いつまで続くのやら”)
- rhetorical acceptance that you may never find out
In literary works, it adds a layer of introspection. In speech, it can sound old-fashioned — like a character from a historical drama or an elderly person talking to themselves. For everyday “I wonder,” you’d more likely use 〜かな or 〜だろう.
のやら / ものやら / ことやら vs だろうか
Both patterns express wonder, but they have different tones and uses.
Both can appear in writing, but だろうか is neutral whereas のやら carries an air of “who knows?” or “I’ve given up guessing.” If you say 何のものやら out loud, you’ll sound like you’re quoting a period drama.
Common mistakes with のやら / ものやら / ことやら
A good check: if you could replace the ending with 〜かね（古風） or 〜ものか（though different nuance） and the sentence still feels self-musing, you’re on the right track.
Is のやら / ものやら / ことやら on the JLPT?
On the test, you’ll mostly encounter it in:
- Reading — literary passages, essays, or letters where the writer muses
- Grammar — choosing the correct ending among similar-looking options (のやら vs. のことか vs. のきわみ etc.)
- Listening — rare, but if it appears it signals an old-fashioned or formal character
Because the three variants (の/もの/こと) are tied to noun categories, N1 questions often test whether you recognize which fits the object of wonder. Study with example sentences that clearly show the type of thing being wondered about.
Practice questions for のやら / ものやら / ことやら
Keep initial sentences simple. Once the structure feels natural, layer on more context so the resigned or poetic nuance shines through.
Learning path for のやら / ものやら / ことやら
Related grammar to review next
- の至りだ — also an N1 sentence-ending pattern, but expresses the “utmost” of an emotion rather than wonder
- の極み — similar in form (の + noun ending), used to mean “the height of”
- のなんのって — an expressive pattern conveying the degree of something (“too much to describe”), useful alongside yara for varied rhetoric
- やら～やら — the parallel listing pattern that is often confused with these sentence-enders; seeing them side-by-side helps you keep them apart
Learn のやら / ものやら / ことやら with Hane
If you want to review のやら / ものやら / ことやら together with the related patterns above, Hane helps you practice Japanese in short, focused sessions.
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FAQ about のやら / ものやら / ことやら
What does のやら / ものやら / ことやら (no yara / mono yara / koto yara) mean in Japanese?
のやら / ものやら / ことやら (no yara / mono yara / koto yara) means “I wonder...; unsure; I don’t know”. It is JLPT N1 grammar. Use のやら / ものやら / ことやら when you want to express that you wonder about something — not to get a reply, but to voice your own uncertainty.
How do you form のやら / ものやら / ことやら (no yara / mono yara / koto yara)?
The pattern always ends the sentence (or appears as an embedded question). It follows a wh-question word plus the phrase that makes the question, capped by the appropriate yara ending.
What is the difference between のやら / ものやら / ことやら and だろうか?
のやら / ものやら / ことやら: self-addressed, literary, no expectation of an answer. だろうか: real question or speculation, can be a genuine inquiry.
What is an example sentence with のやら / ものやら / ことやら (no yara / mono yara / koto yara)?
何を話し合ったのやら、結局何も決まらなかった。 — I wonder what they talked about; in the end nothing was decided.