〜時
JLPT N5:when
Says when something happens: "when X, Y" or "at the time of X".
How to form it
- Put a plain verb or い-adjective before 時: 行く時, 寒い時.
- Nouns take の and な-adjectives take な: 子供の時 (when I was a child), 暇な時 (when I'm free).
- The verb's tense shows the order. With the dictionary form, the main action happens before the 時 action is complete: 日本に行く時、お土産を買った (I bought souvenirs before leaving for Japan).
- With the past, it happens after: 日本に行った時、お土産を買った (I bought souvenirs when I was in Japan).
Examples
子供の時、ピアノを習いました。
I learned the piano when I was a child.
暇な時、何をしますか。
What do you do when you're free?
Notes
- 時 is often written in hiragana: とき.
Common mistakes
- Using the polite form before 時. Say 行く時, not 行きます時.
Similar meaning
- 〜たらif / when
"When" in the sense of "once X happens".
- 〜際にwhen (formal)
"When" or "on the occasion of", in formal speech and notices.