〜か〜ないかのうちに ka ~ nai ka no uchi ni
〜か〜ないかのうちに（ka ~ nai ka no uchi ni）means “almost as soon as ~, right when ~ (before it's even finished)”. Repeats the same verb in dictionary (or past) form and its negative form to mean that the moment one action was about to finish — or had barely finished — the next action happened almost simultaneously. Formation: V-る(／V-た) + か + V-ない + かのうちに ※同じ動詞
almost as soon as ~, right when ~ (before it's even finished)
N2Formation
V-る(／V-た) + か + V-ない + かのうちに ※同じ動詞
Explanation
Repeats the same verb in dictionary (or past) form and its negative form to mean that the moment one action was about to finish — or had barely finished — the next action happened almost simultaneously. It stresses that there was almost no gap; the two events nearly overlap.
Examples
Note
Both clauses describe past, completed events. The same verb must be used for the positive and negative parts. Very close to 〜とたんに and 〜かと思うと but emphasizes the near-simultaneity even more.
FAQ
〜か〜ないかのうちに — what does it mean and how is it used?
almost as soon as ~, right when ~ (before it's even finished). Repeats the same verb in dictionary (or past) form and its negative form to mean that the moment one action was about to finish — or had barely finished — the next action happened almost simultaneously. It stresses that there was almost no gap; the two events nearly overlap.
〜か〜ないかのうちに — how do you form it?
V-る(／V-た) + か + V-ない + かのうちに ※同じ動詞
〜か〜ないかのうちに — any usage notes?
Both clauses describe past, completed events. The same verb must be used for the positive and negative parts. Very close to 〜とたんに and 〜かと思うと but emphasizes the near-simultaneity even more.