HSK 3 grammar · pattern
…的时候
…的时候 — when
Pattern
+
( ) can be left out · other words may come before, between and after
How it works
…的时候 marks the time frame "when / while (something happens)." The whole event phrase comes before 的时候, and the main clause follows. Pair it with 正在 or 着 to stress that the action was ongoing at that moment.
Examples
我小的时候很喜欢画画。
Wǒ xiǎo de shíhou hěn xǐhuan huà huà.
When I was little I loved drawing.
吃饭的时候别看手机。
Chī fàn de shíhou bié kàn shǒujī.
Don't look at your phone while eating.
Related
See it in a story
In the app, …的时候 is underlined wherever it appears in the stories you read, and practised with sentences from them. Free.