〜うちに
JLPT N3:while (still) / before
Doing something while a situation lasts, before it changes: "while…", "before…".
How to form it
- Verbs and い-adjectives use the plain non-past, often ている: 若いうちに (while you're young), 明るいうちに (while it's still light).
- Nouns take の and な-adjectives take な: 学生のうちに, 元気なうちに.
- With a negative, it means "before": 忘れないうちに (before I forget), 暗くならないうちに (before it gets dark).
- It can also mean that something changed while an action went on, often without anyone noticing: 話しているうちに、仲良くなった (as we talked, we became friends).
Examples
若いうちに、たくさん旅行しなさい。
Travel a lot while you're young.
忘れないうちにメモします。
I'll write it down before I forget.
Similar meaning
- 〜前にbefore
"Before" a point in time, with no sense of a chance slipping away.
- 〜間 / 〜間にwhile / during
"While" or "during" a period, without the sense of before it ends.