In English, if we are reflecting on a past time, we often say,
"when I was a child" or "when I was in school."
In Chinese, this can also be expressed by using 的时候 (de
shíhou).
Structure
To talk about events that happened at or
during a particular time, 的时候 (de shíhou) is often used.
This is simply attached to the word or phrase indicating the
time:
(Subj.) + Verb / Adj. + 的 时候, ....
As time words can appear before or after the subject, you can also
place the "Time + 的时候 (de shíhou)" after the subject:
Examples
- 你 不 在 的时候，我 会 想 你。Nǐ bù zài de shíhou, wǒ huì
xiǎng nǐ.When you are not here, I'll
miss you.
- 我 上 大学 的时候，有 很 多 朋友。 Wǒ shàng dàxué de shíhou, yǒu
hěn duō péngyou.When I was in college, I
had a lot of friends.
- 上课 的时候 不要 吃 东西。Shàngkè de shíhou bùyào chī
dōngxi.Don't eat when you are in
class.
- 老板 工作 的时候 喜欢 喝 咖啡。Lǎobǎn gōngzuò de shíhou xǐhuan
hē kāfēi.When the boss works, he likes
to drink coffee.
- 我 生气 的时候，请 你 不要 笑。Wǒ shēngqì de shíhou, qǐng nǐ
bùyào xiào.Please don't laugh when I'm
angry.
- 妈妈 不 在 家 的时候，我 自己 做饭。Māma bù zài jiā de shíhou, wǒ
zìjǐ zuòfàn.When mom is not home, I cook
for myself.
- 开会 的时候 不要 聊天。Kāihuì de shíhou bùyào
liáotiān.Don't chat when you are in a
meeting.
- 吃 东西 的时候 不要 说话。Chī dōngxi de shíhou bùyào
shuōhuà.Don't talk when
eating.
- 你 开车 的时候 会 打 电话 吗？Nǐ kāichē de shíhou huì dǎ
diànhuà ma? Do you talk on the phone
when you're driving?
- 走路 的时候 不要 玩手机。 Zǒulù de shíhou bùyào wán
shǒujī.Don't play with your phone while
walking.
See also
Sources and further
reading
Books
Similar to talking about things in the past, talking about
things in the future is very straight forward. You can use the
simple but useful 以后 (yǐhòu), which also means "later."
Structure
To talk about things happening at some unspecified time in the
future, you can use 以后 (yǐhòu). The structure is:
You can also move 以后 (yǐhòu) to right after the subject, and
it's also correct.
This can be used to talk about actions in the future, or to talk
about events that happened after other events in a
story.
Examples
In the examples below, the translation "in the future" is used,
because using "later" for 以后 (yǐhòu) either sounds weird, or makes
it sound like it's going to happen really soon (just a little
later), rather than at some indefinite point in the future, which
is what is meant.
- 以后 你们 会 想我 吗？ Yǐhòu
nǐmen huì xiǎng wǒ ma? In the future,
will you miss me?
- 以后 你 想 来 中国 吗？ Yǐhòu nǐ
xiǎng lái Zhōngguó ma? In the future, do
you want to come to China?
- 我 以后 不 喝酒 了。 Wǒ yǐhòu bù
hējiǔ le.I will not drink alcohol in the
future.
- 我们 以后 不 在 这里 工作 了。Wǒmen
yǐhòu bù zài zhèlǐ gōngzuò le.We will not work here in the future.
- 你儿子 以后 想 做 什么？Nǐ érzi
yǐhòu xiǎng zuò shénme? In the
future, what does your son want to do?
- 以后 你们 想 去哪儿 工作？ Yǐhòu
nǐmen xiǎng qù nǎr gōngzuò? In the
future, where would you like to work?
- 以后 我们 会 有 一些 新 的 同事。Yǐhòu wǒmen huì yǒu yīxiē xīn de
tóngshì.We will have some new co-workers
in the future.
- 以后 你 可以 住 在 这里。Yǐhòu nǐ
kěyǐ zhù zài zhèlǐ.In the future, you
can live here.
- 他们 以后 会 结婚 吗？Tāmen yǐhòu
huì jiéhūn ma? Will they get married in
the future?
- 你 以后 不 要 跟 他 见面 了。Nǐ
yǐhòu bùyào gēn tā jiànmiàn le.In the future, stop seeing him.
See also
Sources and further
reading
Books
Category:A2 grammar points Category:A2 grammar
points