Grammar Info

N4 Lesson 9: 3/16

ながらWhile ~ing, During, As

The subject of A and B must be the same.

Structure

Verb[ます+ ながら

Details

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About ながら

ながら is another conjunction particle in Japanese that has two primary different meanings. These meanings are as follows:

同時(どうじ)(うご)き - Two things that are existing/happening simultaneously.

確定(かくてい)逆説(ぎゃくせつ) - Two things that are unexpectedly existing/happening simultaneously.

We will focus purely on the 同時(どうじ)(うご)き meaning in this grammar point. To use ながら, simply add it to the ます stem of verb (A), and then highlight verb (B) as part of the following clause. This may be translated simply as 'while' in English.

Grammatically, the (B) action is considered to be the 'important' action, while the (A) action expresses the timeline within which (B) takes place.

Caution

Due to the (B) action being considered the 'primary' action of something that (A) is related to, (A) and (B) must have the same subject.

  • 高校(こうこう)(ころ)サッカー練習(れんしゅう)ながら漢字(かんじ)勉強(べんきょう)
    When I was in high school, I studied kanji while also practicing soccer. (Natural Japanese, as the overall timeline of the sentence is 'while in high school')
  • 漢字(かんじ)勉強(べんきょう)ながらアニメ()
    I watch anime while studying kanji. (Natural Japanese, as the speaker is doing both things at the same time)
  • 大学(だいがく)(かよ)ながら、トランプ()アメリカ大統領(だいとうりょう)だった
    Trump was the president of America while I was going to university. (Unnatural Japanese. Although the events happen at the same time, they share no common subject/place)

Fun Fact

When used to express 確定(かくてい)逆説(ぎゃくせつ), ながら will be followed by . ながらも is a separate grammar point that we will learn more about later. In this construction, is expressing surprise about the fact that (A) and (B) coexist.

  • あそこ病院(びょういん)(ふる)ながらも(なか)綺麗(きれい)()いた
    I heard that that hospital looks nice inside, even though it is old.

Synonyms

Examples

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    シャワー()びながらいいアイディア(おも)いついた。

    While showering, I thought of a good idea.

    (あか)ちゃん()ながら、おならした。

    The baby farted while sleeping.

    バスに()りながら、スマホゲームている

    I am playing games on my phone, while riding the bus.

    友達(ともだち)()ちながら、コーヒー()もう。

    Let's get coffee while waiting for our friends.

    運転(うんてん)しながら携帯(けいたい)使(つか)てはいけない

    You must not use a cellphone while driving.

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        • Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide

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      ながら – Grammar Discussion

      Most Recent Replies (10 in total)

      • deltacat3

        deltacat3

        @Pushindawood Once again thank you kindly! Helpful as always!

      • deltacat3

        deltacat3

        Apologies I have another question already ごめんね!

        シャドーイングは日本語を聞きながら、繰り返すことだ。
        Shadowing is repeating what you hear while listening to Japanese.

        What is the particle と expressing here?

      • Pushindawood

        Pushindawood

        @deltacat3 No problem! This is actually a grammar point that comes a bit later and is not just と, but the combination of と and は to make とは. “とは” means… well, “means,” and is a contraction of というのは. Perhaps a better translation for this sentence would be “Shadowing means…” or “Shadowing is the thing known as…” I apologize for the confusion. Here is our lesson on というのは and here is a video with a breakdown and some more examples. Cheers!

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