Tutorial by Examples: 12c

Use the analytical function row_number(): with t as ( select col1 , col2 , row_number() over (order by col1, col2) rn from table ) select col1 , col2 from t where rn between N and M; -- N and M are both inclusive Oracle 12c handles this more easily with OFFSET and FETCH.

Sample Data: CREATE TABLE table_name ( id, list ) AS SELECT 1, 'a,b,c,d' FROM DUAL UNION ALL -- Multiple items in the list SELECT 2, 'e' FROM DUAL UNION ALL -- Single item in the list SELECT 3, NULL FROM DUAL UNION ALL -- NULL list SELECT 4, 'f,,g' FROM DUAL; -- NULL item...