ながら

ながら Japanese Grammar Lesson

Grammar Type: Conjunction

Essential Meaning: While doing X

Construction: 

• Verb ます-Form + ながら
  • E.g. 話はなしながら [While speaking]
  • E.g. 食たべながら [While eating]

Notes:

• ながら expresses an action that occurs concurrently or simultaneously with another action. It translates to “While doing X“. Importantly, the action that is connected to ながら is always secondary to the action expressed in the main clause.
  • E.g. 飲のみながら話はなしましょう。[Let’s chat while we drink.] In this case, chatting is the main action under under discussion and drinking is a secondary action that occurs concurrently.
  • E.g. 話はなしながらコーヒーを飲のみましょう。 [Let’s drink coffee while we chat.] In this case, drinking is the main action under under discussion and chatting is a secondary action that occurs concurrently.

• ながら cannot be used when the subjects of the two actions are different people.
  • E.g. *ルームメートがステレオを聴ききながら私わたしは勉強べんきょうした。[I studied while my roommate listened to the stereo.] This sentence is unacceptable because the subject of the main clause is the speaker, and the subject of the ながら clause is the roommate. In such a case, 間あいだ can be used instead of ながら.

Example Sentences:

田口たぐちさんはいつも新聞しんぶんを読よみながら朝あさごはんを食たべる。[Mr. Taguchi always eats breakfast while reading the newspaper.]

歩あるきながら本ほんを読よむのは危あぶないですよ。[Reading a book while walking is dangerous.]

山口やまぐちさんは笑わらいながら私わたしの話はなしを聴きいていた。[Ms. Yamaguchi was listening to my story while laughing.]

私わたしは寝ねながら小説しょうせつを読よむのが好すきだ。[I like to read books while lying in bed.]

ものを食たべながら話はなしてはいけません。[It’s bad to speak while eating.]

木村きむらくんは会社かいしゃで働はたらきながら学校がっこうに行いっている。[Kimura-kun is going to school while working at a company.]

WILD Examples:

***YouTube videos may be region-locked depending on your country of origin. If you experience issues, please try using a VPN set to a United States IP address.***