うちに | Grammar

Structure

[verb (dictionary form)] + うちに [verb て-form] + いるうちに [verb ない-form] + うちに [i-adj] + うちに [na-adj] + な + うちに [noun] + の + うちに

Description

うちに means "while": you do something while a state still holds, because it won't hold for ever. It follows the dictionary form, the ている form or the ない-form of a verb, an い-adjective as it is, a な-adjective with な, or a noun with の.

。

I want to travel a lot while I'm young.

。

Please eat it while it's warm.

。

I want to travel while I'm still healthy.

、。

I want to climb Mt. Fuji while I'm in Japan.

ないうちに: "before"

With the ない-form, うちに reads "before": do it while the thing has not yet happened. The verb is negative even though English says "before it happens".

。

Let me write it down before I forget.

。

Let's go home before it starts raining.

。

You should go home before it gets dark.

ているうちに: a change you didn't plan

After ている, うちに says that while one thing went on, something else changed without anyone meaning it to. The second half is a change: なる, てしまう, a feeling arriving.

。

I got sleepy while reading a book.

、。

While talking with him, I gradually started to like him.

うちに or 間に

marks a stretch of time with a fixed end. うちに marks a state that could end at any moment, so it carries "while you still can".

。

I went shopping while the child was asleep.

。

Let's go shopping while the child is asleep.

Before the child wakes up.

Examples

。

Let me write it down before I forget.

。

You should gain a lot of experience while you're young.

。

Please eat it while it's still warm.

。

Let's bring in the laundry before it starts raining.

、。

I want to climb Mt. Fuji while I'm in Japan.

、。

I fell asleep without realizing it while reading a book.

。

I'll clean up the room while I'm on break.

。

I want to travel while I'm still healthy.

。

You should go home before it gets dark.

、。

While talking with him, I gradually started to like him.

、。

I prepared dinner while the children were playing.

、。

While I went a while without using it, I forgot a lot of my Japanese.

References

うちにBunpro