Expressing "when" with "de shihou"

Structure

To talk about events that happened at or during a particular time, 的时候 is often used. This is simply attached to the word or phrase indicating the time:

Time + 的时候 + Subject + Verb + Object

As time words can appear before or after the subject, you can also place the Time + 的时候 after the subject.

Examples

• 我 在 大学 的时候 常常 出去 玩。
• 我 小 的时候，不 喜欢 吃 蔬菜。
• 我 跟 朋友 一起 的时候 喜欢 喝 啤酒。

See also

• Before a specific time
• In the future in general

Sources and further reading

Books

• Basic Patterns of Chinese Grammar (pp. 24-5) →buy