間（あいだ） (aida)
間 — “during ～ / while ～ / between ～”
Pattern
-
名詞 ＋ の ＋ 間（に）Noun + の + 間: during that period (e.g. 夏休みの間) -
動詞（普通形・ている）＋ 間Verb (plain form, often ～ている) + 間: while something continues (e.g. 見ていた間) -
A と B の 間A と B の 間: between A and B (place)
Meaning: a continuing stretch
間 looks at a stretch of time and says something is going on the whole time, from start to finish. In 授業の間、ずっと外を見ていた, the looking continued throughout the class.
Connecting to words
With a noun, use の: 夏休みの間. With a verb, use a form that shows continuing action or state: 待っている間, 寝ている間, 日本にいる間. Na-adjectives take な (静かな間) and i-adjectives attach directly. The sentence after 間 often has ずっと.
間 vs 間に, and the place meaning
間 (without に) is for something continuing the whole time. 間に is for a single event that happens at some point within the period: 留守の間に電話があった. The same word also means “between” for places: 駅と学校の間に店がある.
Examples
-
夏休（なつやす）みの間（あいだ）、国（くに）へ帰（かえ）ります。
Natsuyasumi no aida, kuni e kaerimasu.
I'll go back to my country during the summer vacation.
Noun + の + 間 gives the period during which it happens.
-
授業（じゅぎょう）の間（あいだ）、ずっと外（そと）を見（み）ていた。
Jugyō no aida, zutto soto o mite ita.
During the class, I was looking outside the whole time.
ずっと and ～ていた show the action continued the whole period.
-
駅（えき）と学校（がっこう）の間（あいだ）に、小（ちい）さな店（みせ）がある。
Eki to gakkō no aida ni, chiisana mise ga aru.
There is a small shop between the station and the school.
Here 間 means a place between two things, not time.
Common mistakes
- Do not mix up 間 and 間に. For something that keeps going the whole time, use 間 (勉強している間、音楽を聞いていた); for one event at some moment inside the period, use 間に.
- With a noun, you need の (夏休みの間). Without it the sentence sounds wrong.
More grammar points
- 間（あいだ）に ～間に — “while ～ (something happens during that time)”
- 後（あと）で ～あとで — “after ～ / later”
- 頃（ころ / ごろ） 頃（ころ／ごろ）— “around (a time) / when ～”
- 急（きゅう）に 急に — “suddenly”
- までに までに — “by (a deadline)”
- おきに ～おきに — “every ～ / at intervals of ～”
- さっき さっき — a little while ago
- たばかり ～たばかり — “just ～ed”
- たところ ～たところ — “have just ～ed”
- ているところ ～ているところ — “in the middle of ～ing”
- ところ ～ところだ — about to ～, just on the verge of ～
- やっと やっと — finally, at last
- あまり～ない あまり～ない — “not very ～ / not much”
- ば ～ば — the conditional “if ～”
- 場合（ばあい）は ～場合は — “in the case of ～ / if ～”
- ばかり ばかり — “nothing but ～ / only ～”
- だけで ～だけで — “just by ～ / with only ～”
- 出（だ）す ～出す — “start ～ing suddenly”
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