While III: ～隙に & ～間（ま）に
Back in Lesson 55 and Lesson 56, we learned about the basic expressions for expressing “while” – ～間に and ～うちに – respectively. However, there are two other similar expressions which share their own nuances that deserve attention. Those phrases are ～隙に and ～間（ま）に, and they are a further testament to just how many spatial nouns are repurposed into non-deictic time expressions.
Both patterns are quite similar to ～間に and ～うちに, but they possess their own nuances as to how and why V2 is undergone. In relation to tense, both are most similar to ～間に, as neither requires V2 to be completed within V1’s time frame.
～隙に
The noun 隙 is used in a physical sense to mean “gap/interval,” and this core meaning is further extended to refer to “carelessness” and/or “opportunities” borne from such flaws. You will notice that in many of the examples below, 隙 is very loosely translated.
1. 心の隙を突いてくる詐欺が多い。
There are a lot of scams that strike where it hurts.
2. 簡単なストレッチなのでお仕事の隙を見て一度試してみてください。
(It’s/they’re) simple stretches, so please try (it/them) once when you’ve found a moment away from work.
3. 戸に隙がある。
There are chinks in the door.
4. 口出しする隙もない。
I can’t get a word in edgewise.
5. その裏では常に犯行の隙を狙っている人がいる。
Behind the scenes, there are people who are always looking for opportunities to commit crime.
6. お手隙の際は是非ご覧ください。
By all means, please watch when you are free.
7. 馬鹿に付け入るスキを与えた自分も悪かった。
I was also at fault for giving idiots the chance to take advantage.
8. 隙あらば自分語りしてしまいます。
I seem to talk about myself whenever the chance presents itself.
9. こんな感情はオレには不要だ！隙になる！
There is no need for me to have these sort of feelings! They’ll just become weaknesses!
～隙に shows that one does what one wishes to do during an opportunity that opens up (from the negligence of someone). Putting aside tense or the affirmative-negative nature of the dependent clause itself, V2 is undertaken by the negligence inherent with how V1 does/did (not) go down.
10. ご飯デートで、女性がトイレに立った隙にお会計したのに、女性がトイレから戻ってドリンクを注文してしまったらどうしよう？
What should you do if on a dinner date, you pay the bill while the girl has gone to the restroom but she orders a drink when she returns from the restroom?
11. 子供が親が見ていない隙に高価な商品を触ろうとした。
The child attempted to touch something expensive while their parents weren’t watching.
12. お客さんが途切れた隙に休憩しておこう。
Let’s take our break when there is a break in customers.
13. 少し目を離した隙に逃げられた。
It got away while I was just a little distracted.
14. 犯人が怯んだ隙に警官は犯人に襲い掛かった。
The police officer swooped down on the criminal just as the criminal flinched.
隙（ひま）
A rather rare synonym of 隙（すき） is 隙（ひま）, which is written with the same Kanji but etymologically related to the word 暇 meaning “free time.” While it has fallen out of use, it has roughly the same semantic domain as 隙（すき）, though it noticeably does not get used whenever there is malicious intent.
15. 人のない隙（ひま）に持て来たる。（古語）
I brought it again when there was no one around.
～間（ま）に
The noun 間（ま）has several meanings, but its primary meaning is “space/interval,” and is the older word with this meaning in Japanese. It is primarily used in set phrases, and of its other meanings that are directly related to the concept of “space,” it may also translate to “room,” “just the right moment,” “spare moment,” etc.
16. 食べた瞬間は甘酸っぱくて少し間を置いてからビリビリって辛さがくる。
The second you eat it, it’s sweat and sour, then a little bit later, the tingly spiciness hits.
17. その侍女は次の間に控えていた。
The maid was waiting in the next room.
18. 子供が寝ている間（ま）を見計らって家事を済ました。
I waited for when my kids would be sleeping and finished the house choirs.
19. 駅で一休みする間もありませんでした。
There wasn’t even time to rest at the train station.
In scenarios in which V2 is a volitional act, ～間（ま）に indicates how the agent does so in the time frame in which V1 provides the perfect opportunity for it. Unlike ～隙に, it does not imply negligence by another party. Though principally interchangeable with ～あいだに, it only follows verbal predicates, meaning it may not follow adjectival predicates or noun-predicates. This is because although 間（ま） does not have a particular time frame associated with it, such predicates would render the time frame potentially indefinite until some external force changes it, which beats the point of pinpointing a perfect opportunity.
Due to these factors, it is rather rare in the spoken language, as is demonstrated by the following examples.
20. 先生のいない｛うち ◎・あいだ 〇・ま ？1・すき 〇｝に、すばやくホワイトボードを消してしまった。
I erased the white board quickly while the teacher wasn’t there.
21. 今だ！こっちを見ない｛うち 〇・すき 〇・ま X・ 間 X｝に、逃げて！
Now! Run away while they don’t look here!
22. 夜｛が・の｝涼しい｛うち 〇・間 〇・ま X・すき X｝に、部屋を綺麗にした。
I cleaned my room while the night was cool.
When it is used in the spoken language, ～間（ま）に, it is usually in set phrases, but the context at hand involves a V1 in which volition is taken completely out of the equation, with V2 occurring rather ‘conveniently’ during that time.
23. 鬼の居ぬ間（ま）に洗濯2。
Literally: The washing (must be done) before the ogre comes.
When the cat’s away, the mice will play.
24. 知らぬ間に母親が火葬されてしまっていた。
Before I even knew it, my mother had been cremated.
25. 気付かぬまに君を傷つけてしまった。
I had hurt you before I even noticed it.