〜とき

About

とき, often translated as "when", can attach to any part of speech, and forms a time clause. Time clauses are dependent clauses, and can't exist on their own (e.g. "When I was a kid...").

Since とき is a noun, other nouns must attach to it using the の particle, and な-adjectives must use the な particle. Nouns and な-adjectives may also attach with their negative markers: じゃない/ではない. Verbs and い-adjectives may be attached directly.

とき may be combined with particles such as は, が, に, も, and から/まで. Each particle will affect the nuance of a given sentence:

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  〜ときは marks とき's time clause as the topic of conversation and emphasizes what comes next.

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  〜ときが marks とき's time clause as the sentence's subject, while also emphasizing it.

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  〜ときに places a double emphasis on the time clause, although に is often omitted.

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  〜ときも expresses that the time clause being mentioned is in addition to something else.

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  〜ときから says that something occurs from the time clause onwards, while 〜ときまで says that something happened until the time clause.

Summary

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  〜とき ("when...") attaches to any part of speech, and forms a "time clause".

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  Nouns require の to attach to とき, and な-adjectives require な.

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  Verbs and い-adjectives can attach directly to とき.

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  とき may be paired with particles such as は, が, に, and から/まで

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