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I understand that 'no naka' means 'in' or 'inside', but how does the meaning
change when 'ni' is placed after it? For example:

Hako no naka - inside the box.

Hako no naka _ni_ - ???
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2019-02-04T11:57:44.190
65282
2019-02-05T18:04:37.490
2019-02-05T18:04:37.490
question
grammar particles particle-に relational-nouns
The difference between 'no naka' and 'no naka ni'
箱{はこ}の中{なか} (hako no naka) simply means "the box's inside". It says nothing
about the relationship between the inside of the box and another entity, e.g.

> 箱の中は広{ひろ}い。 (hako no naka wa hiroi.)  
>  The inside of the box is spacious.

箱の中に (hako no naka ni) means " **in** the box's inside". It describes how
another entity relates to the inside of the box, e.g.

> 箱の中 **に** は大{おお}きな象{ぞう}がいる。(hako no naka ni wa ookina zou ga iru)  
>  There's a large elephant inside the box.
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-02-04T19:52:27.333
65288
2019-02-04T19:52:27.333
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answer