When listing nouns belonging to a certain category, 啊 (a) can be added to the end of each noun to give an informal feeling a bit like saying "you know, that kind of thing" after a list of things.
Structure
Examples
- 我们 什么 零食 都 有，花生 啊，瓜子 啊，薯片 啊，你 随便 吃 吧。 We have all sorts of snacks: peanuts, roasted seeds, chips, go ahead and eat whatever you want.
- 椅子 啊，桌子 啊，电脑 啊 什么的 都 买 好 了，现在 办公室 只 差 招 员工 了！ Chairs, tables, computers, and so one have all been bough. Now the office only needs to hire workers!
- 《发展 汉语》 啊， 《实用 汉语 课本》 啊，我 都 学 过，没 用！ "Developing Chinese" and "The Practical Chinese Reader," we've studied both of them, they won't help.
As in the first example, the list can be followed by 什么的, but is not generally followed by 等 as this feels too formal.
See also
Sources and Further Reading