とき (toki) Meaning Japanese Grammar - When

The noun とき (toki) means time, period, moment, age, hour and also has the meaning of when with the function of a conjunction used in time clauses.

We learn in this post the difference in usage and meaning of とき written in Hiragana and 時(とき) transcribed in Kanji according to Japanese official texts and how they are actually used in everyday life.

We analyse together the various cases in which とき is used through real examples and material on the internet.

Differences between 時(とき) and とき

とき transcribed in Kanji 時(とき) is mainly used as a noun in its meaning of time, moment, period.

A popular ことわざ proverb:

• 時(とき)は金(かね)なり: "Time is money".
• 時(とき)をまつ: waiting for the (right) time

とき transcribed in Hiragana instead expresses a condition, a situation; it is translated with the temporal conjunction when and in some cases with the hypothetical conjunction if.

Let's see the difference through 2 examples:

1. 時(とき)の流(なが)れ:the passing of time; use as a noun
2. 困(こま)ったとき: when / if I am in trouble; from the verb 困(こま)る in the past tense 困(こま)った; use as conjunction

Other examples of とき:

• 行(い)けないときは: when / if I cannot go there
• いざというときは: it is a common Japanese expression that means in case of need, in case of emergency

とき as a conjunction can be replaced by the structure 場(ば)合(あい)は.

⇨ 行(い)けないときは becomes 行(い)けない場(ば)合(あい)は: in case I cannot go

場(ば)合(あい)は (baai wa) means if, in the case of, in some cases.

These are the main differences that we read in the official texts. However, we can also find the Kanji 時(とき) when it has a conjunction function in time clauses.

When とき is used

とき is used to express the moment at which certain states exist or certain actions occur.

とき links two sentences: it expresses in the subordinate clause the moment when the state or action described in the main clause occurs.

• Example with a い Adjective:

とき preceded by the verb in the present tense

The verb preceding とき is in plain form and can be in the present or past tense.

First case: Time Clause 1 with とき and Main Clause 2 are in the present tense.

The use of the present tense often represents habitual actions.

• Example with a な Adjective:

とき expresses the time when the action takes place and depending on the sentence, can be translated as 'before' or 'after'.

Second case: Time Clause 1 with とき in the present tense and Main Clause 2 in the past tense.

Literally: it was necessary (to communicate) the telephone number

とき preceded by the verb in the past tense

In this case とき is preceded by the past tense form and the Main Clause can be in the present or past tense.

First case: Time Clause 1 with とき in the past tense and Main Clause 2 in the present tense.

The action in Time clause 1 with とき occurs before the action in the Main Clause 2:

⇨ I forgot something, I go home and get it.

Second case: Time Clause 1 with とき in the past tense and Main Clause 2 in the past tense.

In this case both actions occur in a past time.

Examples of とき

Here is a sentence from a website that provides psychological support to mothers in the communication with their children.

In the previous 2 sentences we find the use of 2 potential forms expressed by the suffixes れる / られる and by the verb できる.

• 聞(き)けない can't ask
• 説(せつ)明(めい)できない: can't explain

とき formally is a noun, so it can be followed by particles.

The literal translation of the last sentence is: 'Solution method (対処法) in the case you deleted your Instagram account and forgot your password'.

Sentence from a Japanese essay:

We can also translate as: "When the results are good, it is thanks to others. When they are bad it is our fault.

As I mentioned in the post, we can also find とき in Kanji 時(とき) when it functions as a conjunction in the time clause.