～中
～じゅう · ～juu · JLPT N5 · noun
while
中 = middle: in the middle of X = during X, while X is going on
中 means middle or inside. As a suffix read じゅう (juu), it stretches over the whole span of the word before it: 一日中 (ichinichi-juu) = all day long, 一年中 (ichinen-juu) = all year. Sound hook: juu rhymes with through, as in all the way through.
中 — vertical stroke 丨 through enclosure 口
Pictograph of a banner or pole piercing the center of a target or territory, depicting the idea of 'middle' or 'center'. The horizontal frame represents boundaries, and the vertical line marks the central axis. The meaning extended from spatial center to 'middle, central, China' (中国, the Middle Kingdom).
～ちゅう · ～chuu · JLPT N5 · noun
while ~ing
中 = middle: tack it on a noun to be in the middle of doing it
中 means middle or inside. As a suffix read chuu, it puts you mid-activity: 会議中 = mid-meeting, 勉強中 = mid-study, 食事中 = mid-meal. Sound hook: you are still chewing (chuu) on the task, so it is not finished yet.
中 — vertical stroke 丨 through enclosure 口
Pictograph of a banner or pole piercing the center of a target or territory, depicting the idea of 'middle' or 'center'. The horizontal frame represents boundaries, and the vertical line marks the central axis. The meaning extended from spatial center to 'middle, central, China' (中国, the Middle Kingdom).