Why used the word when

The word “when” has multiple functions. It can be used as an adverb, conjunction,  pronoun, and noun.

1. Adverb

This word is categorized as an adverb because it modifies a verb, and adjective, or another adverb by indicating the time. For example, in the sentence below:

Sunday is the day when I get my hair done.

The word “when” is used to denote the time (Sunday) when the verb is performed.

Definition:

a. at what time

• Example:
• When did you last see Carlo?

1. Conjunction

In some cases, it is also considered as a conjunction because it can join two clauses or phrases together by suggesting the time. Furthermore, it can also substitute the words “whereas” or “although.” In the sample sentence below:

Raise your hand when you’re finished.

The word “when” connects “raise your hand” with “you’re finished.”

Definition:

a. at or during the time that.

• Example:
• I loved math when I was in middle school.

b. after which; and just then

• Example:
• She had just drifted off to sleep when the doorbell buzzed.

c. although; whereas

• Example:
• I’m saying it now, when I should have told you long ago.

1. Pronoun

Other times, the word “when” is classified under pronouns if it is used to represent an unknown or unspecified time. For instance, in the example:

You need the report by when?

The word “when” is considered as a pronoun because it represents the unknown time when the report is needed.

Definition:

a. what or which time

• Example:
• I have lived here, since when I was born.

1. Noun

Sometimes, the word “when” is also used as a noun which refers to the time when something happened or is done. For example, in this sentence:

He is troubled by the how and when of life.

“When” is the noun, it is a particular period of life and is the doer of an action- it “troubled” the subject “He.”

Definition:

a. the time in which something is done or comes about

• Example:
• The confusion is over the when of the statement.

Have you ever wondered how to use these words correctly? Have you ever thought, “Oh, either of these words will do”? Let’s have a closer look.

Rule 1 – If an event is unique or its date or time is known, use when.

Examples:
The game will begin Friday evening when the clock strikes seven.

When I told you I wanted a vacation, I meant a cabana by the beach, not a ticket to the Super Bowl!

She loved to play baseball with the neighborhood kids when she was a youngster.

Rule 2 – Whenever is best used for repeated events or events whose date or time is uncertain. If you can substitute every time that or at whatever time that in your sentence, then whenever is preferred.

Examples:
Whenever I get in the shower, the phone rings.

Whenever you decide to begin eating healthier foods, I’ll help you come up with new recipes.

Note: When can often substitute for whenever but generally not the other way around. The exception is using whenever as an intensive form of when in questions: Whenever will that dog stop barking?

Examples:

Correct:
When I get in the shower, the phone rings. (When is acceptable but whenever is preferred for conveying the meaning every time that.)

When you decide to begin eating healthier foods, I’ll help you come up with new recipes. (When is acceptable but whenever is preferred for conveying the meaning at whatever time that.)

Whenever are you going to finish cleaning the garage? (intensive form in a question)

Incorrect:
The game will begin Friday evening whenever the clock strikes seven.

Pop Quiz
1. Do you know when/whenever we’re supposed to arrive at your mother’s house?
2. Let me know when/whenever you’ll be arriving at the airport next week so I can pick you up.
3. When/Whenever the baby cries, she clenches her little fists.
4. I lived in a small town when/whenever I was seven years old.
5. Do you recheck your math when/whenever you have difficulty balancing your checkbook?

Answers:
1. Do you know when we’re supposed to arrive at your mother’s house?
2. Let me know when you’ll be arriving at the airport next week so I can pick you up.
3. Whenever the baby cries, she clenches her little fists. (When could also be used but whenever better conveys the meaning every time that the baby cries.)
4. I lived in a small town when I was seven years old.
5. Do you recheck your math whenever you have difficulty balancing your checkbook? (When could also be used but whenever better conveys the meaning at the time that or every time that you have difficulty balancing your checkbook.)

Advertisement

If the article or the existing discussions do not address a thought or question you have on the subject, please use the «Comment» box at the bottom of this page.

В заключительной статье из цикла материалов о вопросительных словах я познакомлю вас с нюансами использования слов where, when и how.

Если вы пропустили две первые статьи из цикла, в которых я рассказывала о словах who, whom, whose и what, which, why, то вы всегда можете найти их в блоге.

Итак, давайте перейдем к нашей теме.

Where? – Где?

Вопросительное слово, которое используют, когда говорят о месте:

В некоторых контекстах, в сочетании с глаголами движения (go, fly, run, drive и другими), where может обозначать «куда»:

Кроме того, слово where, сочетаясь с предлогом from, который ставится в конец вопроса, может менять свое значение на «откуда»:

Если в конце предложения стоит предлог from, то вам нужно сразу обращать на это внимание и начинать вопрос словом «откуда».

When? – Когда?

Это слово используется в вопросах о времени:

На вопрос с when можно ответить по-разному: указать точное время, день, месяц или год. В том случае, если вам нужен конкретный ответ – уточняйте вопрос:

Если вы хотите спросить «Который час?» или «В котором часу?», то следует использовать What time?:

Кстати, я заметила, что многие не умеют правильно говорить о времени на английском языке, долго думают перед тем, как сказать который час. Если вы тоже не уверены, что помните как говорить о времени на английском языке, то рекомендую вам изучить материалы Как указывать время на английском и Предлоги времени.

Когда ваш вопрос не о точном времени, а о том, насколько часто совершается/совершалось действие, то начинайте вопрос не с When, а с How often:

И в ответе, конечно же, вам понадобится наречие частоты или adverb of frequency, одно слово или целая фраза. О них я подробно рассказываю в статье Наречия частоты.

How? – Как? Каким образом?

Одно из самых «продуктивных» вопросительных слов. How – это о том, как происходит действие:

Имея изначальный перевод «как», слово how образует много разных сочетаний с другими словами: наречиями и прилагательными.

Выше я уже упоминала сочетание How often (Как часто?):

How many и How much (Сколько?). How many – для исчисляемых существительных, How much – для неисчисляемых существительных:

Об особенностях использования слов many и much вы можете узнать из статьи Слова many, much, a lot of в значении «много».

Другие наречия, которые можно встретить с how: well, quickly, fast:

How образует вопросительные сочетания с прилагательными far, big, long, deep, wide, old и другими. На русский эти сочетания переводятся по-разному:

Говорят, что тот, кто умеет правильно построить вопрос, тот умеет и правильно на него ответить. Теперь вы знакомы с большинством вопросительных слов и сможете построить и, соответственно, ответить на любой вопрос.

Еще три вопросительных слова со всеми нюансами отправляются в ваш запас. Используйте и не допускайте ошибок!

До встречи на занятиях и в блоге Enginform! Записаться на бесплатное вводное занятие можно прямо сейчас!

И не забудьте подписаться на наши сообщества в Facebook и Вконтакте. Там вы найдете много интересных и полезных материалов для изучения английского!

What’s the difference between the subordinate conjunctions when and while?

When & While: The Short Answer

In some sentences, you can use either without a great change in meaning. Generally, if you want to focus on an action that has a duration being in progress, use a while + a progressive tense.

While I was washing the dishes, my wife came home.* (Washing the dishes has a duration, e.g. 4 minutes.)

(*Note you can also use when here, but as a general rule, while is suitable.)

In other cases when you don’t need to emphasize that an action was in progress or the action is short and without a significant duration, use when and a simple tense.

When it started to rain, we went inside. (The action started is short; it is not something in progress).

Here are some tips on the use of these two conjunctions.

A sensible rule is to use while with the progressive tenses and when with the simple tenses.

Exception: Focusing on a Verb in Progress

You could use while with a state verb like ‘live’ if you really want to focus on the fact that an action was in progress at a specific time. For example:

While I was living in India, there was a big earthquake.

Although it would probably be more common to use When I lived in India, this sentence is correct. The speaker chooses to use ‘While’ + present progressive’ to focus on an action being in progress (living) when another action happened.

Remember: While Means an Action Had a Start and an End (a Duration)

If a sentence uses while, it suggests that the action happened over a period of time. Here’s are two better examples to show what I mean:

When the phone rang, I was making lunch.

The longer action (making lunch) was happening when a shorter action happened (phone rang).

Key question: How many times did the phone ring? Because we’re using when, we don’t know. The use of when doesn’t suggest it was an ongoing action. The phone may have rang once and stopped.

While the phone was ringing, I was making lunch.

How many times did the phone ring here? More than once. Because we are using While + present progressive, we are focusing on duration. This means that the action (ring) happened over a period of time that had a start and end. When we say ‘the phone was ringing’ in the progressive, we are saying that this happened for some time. (Thanks to Clive at Englishforums for this point.)

While vs. When: In Conclusion

I hope these ideas have been useful. Remember, these are general tips (not fixed rules). There will be exceptions depending on what the speaker wants to emphasize. If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.

— Matthew Barton / Creator of Englishcurrent.com