Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 8: 3/23

序(つい)でにWhile you are at it, On the occasion

Structure

Verb + ついでに
Noun + の + ついでに
Phrase。ついでに + Phrase

Details

  • Register

    Standard

About ついでに

序(つい)でに is an adverb in Japanese that is used in a similar way to 'while you're at it', or 'on the occasion of (A)' in English. 序(つい)で itself is a noun that means 'precedence' (in terms of being the first thing to happen). Due to this, the literal meaning of 序(つい)でに may be thought of as 'with (A) as the precedence, (B)'.

序(つい)でに is commonly used with verbs, or nouns. In the case of nouns, it will need to be preceded by the case marking particle の.

Fun Fact

Just like 'precedence' in English, 序(つい)でに implies that (A) is the instigator for (B). Because of this, 序(つい)でに is a good way to convey that something is not urgent, but, if (A) is happening, it is the perfect chance to do (B) as well.

Caution

序(つい)でに is more formal than 間(あいだ)に or 時(とき)に, so has more of a tendency to be used for 'one-off' things, rather than regular occurrences. Despite this, it still may be used to describe regular occurrences at times, especially when speaking formally or politely, such as to a senpai.

Related

Examples

--:--

    序(つい)でに君(きみ)の分(ぶん)も払(はら)ってあげるよ。

    While I am at it, I will pay for your share too.

    序(つい)でに君(きみ)の車(くるま)も洗(あら)ってあげようか？

    While I am at it, do you want me to wash your car too?

    ここまで来(き)たなら序(つい)でにうちにも寄(よ)ってよ。

    On the occasion of coming this far, why don't you drop by my house?

    話(はなし)の序(つい)でに言(い)っておきたいことがあります。

    While I am on the subject, I want to tell you something.

    給油(きゅうゆ)の序(つい)でに車(くるま)を点検(てんけん)してもらいました。

    While I was refueling, I also had my car checked.

  • Get more example sentences!

    Premium users get access to 12 example sentences on all Grammar Points.

Self-Study Sentences

Study your own way!

Add sentences and study them alongside Bunpro sentences.

  • Online

    • Offline

        There are no Offline resources listed for 「ついでに」.

        You can . Resources are constantly updated, come back later to see new additions!

      • Track Resources!

        Bunpro tracks all of the resources you’ve visited, and offers relevant bookmarks of physical books to help with offline tracking.

      ついでに – Grammar Discussion

      Most Recent Replies (5 in total)

      • mrnoone

        mrnoone

        English translation:
        while you are at it
        on the occasion

        Structure:
        Verb + ついでに
        Verb[ た ] + ついでに
        Noun + の + ついでに

        Explanation:
        [AついでB ・On the occasion of doing A, doing B as well (on the way)・more formal than 間 or 時]

        View on Bunpro

      • Munzu

        Munzu

        給油のついでに車を点検してもらいました。

        I tried to fill in 「うちに」instead of 「ついでに」but it got marked as wrong. Can anybody help me understand the difference?

      • nekoyama

        nekoyama

        With ついでに you go to the shop because you need to refuel the car, but since you’re already at the shop you also have it checked. These two actions don’t necessarily happen at the same time.

        With うちに you go to the shop and start refuelling your car, and before you finish refuelling, you also have your car checked during the time it takes you to refuel it.

      • Fuga

        Fuga

        Hey there! As @nekoyama has said, the main difference of うちに and ついでに is that うちに has the nuance of ‘the best time something should happen’ and ついでに has the nuance of ‘on the occasion’. The sentence 給油のついでに車を点検してもらいました has the nuance of ‘I had my car checked, because I was already out refueling my car.’

        Another thing to remember is that when うちに is attached to a verb, it will be attached to the ている for of verbs. So, if you wanted to use うちに here, the sentence will be 給油しているうちに、車を点検してもらいました。‘I had my car inspected wile I was refueling my car (and it finished before I finished refueling).’

      • Munzu

        Munzu

        Thank you @nekoyama and @Fuga for the detailed explanations!

      • Pablunpro

        Pablunpro

        Hello,

        While studying this grammar, I see that the header is ‘序でに’ while it is written as ‘序に’ in the rest of the text when it appears in its kanji form. As per Jisho, both forms are used.

        While it appears that it is normally written in kana (ついでに), wouldn’t it be possible to adjust the header and the body of the text so that they both use a common kanji form and include the other version under the header as an orange note?

        Thank you for your consideration. 良い一日を

      Got questions about ついでに? Join us to discuss, ask, and learn together!

      Join the Discussion