Japanese Language Grammar Pattern using toki 「とき」to express time
Japanese Language Grammar Pattern using toki 「とき」to express time
This is an article relates with the Japanese language grammar pattern using particle ‘toki’「とき」. As the title informs, it is used to express certain time to mark an activity or an event. Apart from defining the time using a specific time measurement such an hour, minutes or seconds it stress on the acvity or event in this context. The translation of the grammar pattern is shown below :
| 1. | To express time of an event or an activity |
| 2. | At the time of …(an event or an activity occurred) |
| 3. | When the time of …(an event or an activity happened) |
| 4. | Any kind of translations which is pointing out the time of an event or an activity starts or ends. |
This Japanese language grammar pattern using particle toki (とき) specifically used to indicate time of something including event or activity。 Furthermore, the purpose of using this grammar pattern is solely to stress the time of an activity or an event occurred. Below is the pattern :
| Kanji | : | … | + | 動詞「普通形」 | + | とき | + | … |
| Hiragana | : | … | + | どうし「ふつけい」 | + | とき | + | … |
| Romaji | : | … | + | doushi「futsu kei」 | + | toki | + | … |
| Meaning | : | … | + | verb 「plain form」 | + | when | + | … |
Based on the above pattern below is an example in form of a sentence :
| Kanji | : | 友達が教室で勉強するときいつも寝ながらいびきをかけます。 |
| Hiragana | : | ともだちがきょうしつでべんきょうするときいつもねながらいびきをかけます。 |
| Romaji | : | Tomodachi ga kyoushitsu de benkyou suru toki itsumo nenagara ibiki wo kakemasu. |
| Meaning | : | (My) friend always snoring while sleeping when it comes for study in the class. |
In the above example, particle ‘toki’ combined with plain form of verb is used to indicate a certain point of time where an event starts or activity occurred. The event or the activity is when the subject study in the class. The verb which is used before particle ‘toki’ is in the plain form. That verb is ‘benkyou suru’ which is translated as ‘to study’ and the verb itself is originally the same form with the dictionary form. So, ‘benkyou suru’ before particle ‘toki’ is actually also a plain form.