Structure
Verb[stem]+ ながら
Details
Standard
About ながら
ながら is another conjunction particle in Japanese that has two primary different meanings. These meanings are as follows:
同時の動き - Two things that are existing/happening simultaneously.
確定の逆説 - Two things that are unexpectedly existing/happening simultaneously.
We will focus purely on the 同時の動き 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.
Fun Fact
When used to express 確定の逆説, ながら will be followed by も. ながらも is a separate grammar point that we will learn more about later. In this construction, も is expressing surprise about the fact that (A) and (B) coexist.
Related
Misc.
Examples
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シャワーを浴びながらいいアイディアを思いついた。
While showering, I thought of a good idea.
赤ちゃんが寝ながら、おならをした。
The baby farted while sleeping.
バスに乗りながら、スマホでゲームをしている。
I am playing games on my phone, while riding the bus.
友達を待ちながら、コーヒーを飲もう。
Let's get coffee while waiting for our friends.
運転しながら携帯を使ってはいけない。
You must not use a cellphone while driving.
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〜ながら
MaggieSensei
Offline
[DBJG] A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar
Page 269
Genki II 1st Edition
Page 119
Genki II 2nd Edition
Page 148
Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
Page 291
みんなの日本語 II
Page 24 [CH 28]
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ながら – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (15 in total)
thelizard
I didn’t think of checking the vocab section. Thank you so much.
This means I can’t just attach ながら to any adjective but only to those set ones?
Asher
While some constructions are more common, you can attach it to pretty much any adjective and have a completely natural sentence. ながら actually has a lot of uses in Japanese that extend beyond the basic grammar point that we introduce. ながら運転 for example puts ながら at the beginning of a word rather than after to mean ‘driving while doing something’, and refers to doing stuff you’re not supposed to while driving like using your phone or watching tv on a dashboard monitor. ながら運転はダメだよ!
thelizard
thank you for the clarifications, this helps a lot
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