暗あん々あんのうちに

あ

ん

あ

ん

の

う

ち

に

Meanings

1

expression, adverb

secretly; covertly; tacitly

Describes actions done in secret, without being noticed, or with implicit understanding. Often used in formal or written contexts. Related to 暗々裏.

Kanji

暗darkness, disappear, shade
闇get dark, gloom, disorder

Related words

暗あん々あん裏り
Synonymous expression meaning 'secretly' or 'behind the scenes'; 暗々のうちに is more adverbial and phrase-like.

Written forms

暗あん々あんのうちに
Standard kanji spelling using 暗 (darkness).
闇あん々あんのうちに
Variant using 闇 (darkness); less common but acceptable.
暗あん暗あんのうちに
Old-style kanji form without iteration marks; rarely used in modern writing.
闇あん闇あんのうちに
Old-style kanji form without iteration marks; rarely used in modern writing.

Etymology

Compound of 暗々 (reduplication of 暗, 'darkness', emphasizing secrecy) + のうちに ('within, while'). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the phrase has been used in formal Japanese to mean 'in secret' or 'covertly'.