〜んばかり (~n bakari) — as if about to ~ (an extreme state)

It didn't quite happen, but it was that close — a written way to show how extreme something is.

Formula (सूत्र ढाँचा)

Vない [ない] + ん + ばかり

Grammar rule (व्याकरण नियम र परिभाषा)

When to use it

A concert ends and the applause is so loud you'd think the building is about to split apart. It doesn't split — but it gets that close.
It lives mostly in writing, news and stories — 割れんばかりの拍手, あふれんばかりの笑顔.

Meaning

「〜んばかり」= 'it didn't really happen, but it almost did', meaning the state is far beyond normal — a stress on 'how extreme!'.
「言わんばかり」is a special one: nothing was said aloud, but the face or behaviour 'as good as said it' — 「帰れと言わんばかりの顔」.

How to attach

Take the ない-form, drop 「ない」, add 「ん」+「ばかり」: 割れない → 割れんばかり, 泣き出さない → 泣き出さんばかり
する becomes せんばかり
At the end of a sentence 「〜んばかりだ」, before a verb 「〜んばかりに」, before a noun 「〜んばかりの N」

Versus what you know

N3「今にも〜そうだ」(今にも雨が降りそうだ) is a plain guess from what you see; 「んばかり」stresses 'how extreme!'.

Watch out

It describes a state you can see right now, not a forecast — you cannot say 「明日は雨が降らんばかりだ」; there, 「降りそうだ」is right.

Examples (उदाहरणहरू)

試合に勝った瞬間、スタジアムは割れんばかりの歓声に包まれた。

しあいにかったしゅんかん、スタジアムはわれんばかりのかんせいにつつまれた。

The moment they won, the stadium was filled with cheers loud enough to split it apart.

How it is built (कसरी बन्यो) 割れる = to split → ない-form: 割れない → drop 「ない」: 割れ → attach 「んばかり」 → it comes before a noun, so 「の」: 割れんばかりの → then 歓声 (cheers) — the stadium didn't really split, but the noise was that loud.

合格の知らせを聞いて、母は泣き出さんばかりに喜んだ。

ごうかくのしらせをきいて、はははなきださんばかりによろこんだ。

Hearing the news that I passed, my mother was so happy she nearly burst into tears.

How it is built (कसरी बन्यो) 泣き出す = to start crying → ない-form: 泣き出さない → drop 「ない」: 泣き出さ → 「んばかり」 + 「に」 before a verb → then 喜んだ (was happy) — my mother didn't actually cry, but her joy was that extreme.

部長は何も言わなかったが、その顔は「やり直せ」と言わんばかりだった。

ぶちょうはなにもいわなかったが、そのかおは「やりなおせ」といわんばかりだった。

The department head said nothing, but the look on their face as good as said, "Do it again."

How it is built (कसरी बन्यो) 言う = to say → ない-form: 言わない → drop 「ない」: 言わ → 「んばかり」 → it's where the sentence ends, so 「だった」 → nothing was said out loud, but that face as good as said it.

Knowledge check (मिनी ज्ञान जाँच)

Question: 1/3

「演奏が終わると、会場は＿＿＿ばかりの拍手に包まれた。」— fill the blank.

💡 Hint: Drop 「ない」from the ない-form and add what?