間に (あいだに) — A Point Within a Window
Indicates that a specific, often momentary event occurs at SOME point within a duration — once during the period, not throughout it.
Structure
[Verb ている / Noun + の] + 間に
Examples
寝ている間に雨が降った。
Nete iru aida ni ame ga futta.
It rained at some point while I was sleeping.
間に + 降った: the rain happened once during the sleep, not for its whole length.
母が買い物に行っている間に、ケーキを作りました。
Haha ga kaimono ni itte iru aida ni, keeki o tsukurimashita.
I made a cake while my mother was out shopping.
行っている間に + 作りました: the cake was made at some point within the shopping window.
授業の間に、雨がやみました。
Jugyou no aida ni, ame ga yamimashita.
The rain stopped at some point during class.
授業の間に + やみました: a one-time event within the class period, not throughout it.
• Adding に pins the second clause to a moment inside the window, so it should be a completed/instant action (降った, 生まれた, 盗まれた). • Compare: 'I slept through the whole movie' → 間; 'I fell asleep during the movie' → 間に.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones 間に is tested against.
vs 間
間 (no に) = the main action lasts the whole duration; 間に = the main action happens at one point inside the duration.
vs うちに
うちに stresses acting 'while the chance/state lasts (before it ends)'; 間に is neutral about timing within the window.
More time expressions
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