when
English · Thesaurus
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Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
when
- /wɛn/
- /wɪn/ pin pen merger
- /ʍɛn/
- /w̥ɛn/
- /ʍɪn/
- /w̥ɪn/ pin pen merger
Sounds like wen (wine–whine merger), win, winne, wynn (wine–whine merger, pin–pen merger) · Rhymes with -ɛn
Where it comes from
From Middle English when(ne), whan(ne), from Old English hwonne, from Proto-West Germanic *hwannē, from Proto-West Germanic *hwan, from Proto-Germanic *hwan (“at what time, when”), from Proto-Indo-European *kʷís (interrogative base).
Cognate with Scots whan (“when”), Dutch wanneer (“when”), wan (“when”) and wen (“when, if”), Low German wannehr (“when”), wann (“when”) and wenn (“if, when”), German wann (“when”) and wenn (“when, if”), Gothic 𐍈𐌰𐌽 (ƕan, “when, how”), Latin quandō (“when”). More at who.
Interjection sense: a playful misunderstanding of "say when" (i.e. say something / speak up when you want me to stop) as "say [the word] when".
adverb wen
- At what time? At which time? Upon which occasion or circumstance? Used to introduce direct or indirect questions about time. When will they arrive?
- Used after a noun or noun phrase in isolation to express impatience with an anticipated future event. The site's all bugged. Fix when?
- At an earlier time and under different, usually less favorable, circumstances. He's mister high and mighty now, but I remember him when.
- At which, on which, during which: often omitted or replaced with that. That was the day when the Twin Towers fell.
- The time at, on or during which. I recall when they were called the Greys.
- A circumstance or situation in which. Love is when you can't get enough of someone.
conjunction wen
-
At (or as soon as) that time that; at the (or any and every) time that; if.
Pavlov's dogs salivate when [i.e. at any and every time that] they hear a bell.
Similar: as soon as, immediately, once, whenever
-
During the time that; at the time of the action of the following clause or participle phrase.
They dream when [i.e. during the time that] they sleep.
Similar: while
- At what time; at which time. I am here till Friday, when [i.e. at which time] I leave for Senegal.
-
Since; given the fact that; considering that.
I don't see the point of putting up Christmas decorations when I am the only person who is going to see them.
Similar: given that
- Whereas; although; at the same time as; in spite of the fact that. You're picking at your scabs when you should be letting them heal.
Similar: whilst, seeing that
pronoun wen
- What time; which time. Since when do I need your permission?
noun whens · wen
- The time at which something happens. A good article will cover the who, the what, the when, the where, the why and the how.
interjection wen
- That's enough: a command asking someone to stop adding something, especially an ingredient or portion of food or drink; used in, or as if in, literal response to ‘Say when’. HOCKEN: Say “when”, Frank. / DREBIN: Whe—
- Expressing impatience. Why when I ſay?[…]Off with my boots, you rogues: you villaines, when?[…]Out you rogue[…]
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: whenever, once, after, while, since, upon, as, immediately, instantly, momentarily, subsequently, presently, soon, eventually, meanwhile, meantime
conjunction
Similar: whilst, seeing that
Translations
Every language
adv at what time, as a direct question
| Español | cuándo |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 언제 eonje |
| 日本語 | 何時 itsu, いつ itsu |
| 中文 | 甚麼時候 /什麼時候 /什么时候 shénme shíhòu, 何時 /何时 héshí |
| हिन्दी | कब kab |
| Kiswahili | lini |
| Português | quando |
| Français | quand |
| Deutsch | wann |
| Italiano | quando |
| Ελληνικά | πότε póte |
| Română | când |
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
| Tiếng Việt | khi nào, bao giờ |
| العربية | مَتَى matā |
| עברית | מָתַי matay, באיזו שעה b'éizo sha'á |
adv at what time, as an indirect question
| Español | cuándo |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 甚麼時候 /什麼時候 /什么时候 shénme shíhòu |
| हिन्दी | कब kab |
| Português | quando |
| Français | quand |
| Deutsch | wann |
| Ελληνικά | πότε póte |
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
| Tiếng Việt | bao giờ |
| العربية | عِنْدَمَا ʕindamā |
adv the time at, on or during which
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
|---|
adv a circumstance or situation in which
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
|---|
conj as soon as, at the time that
| Español | cuando, al, en que |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | ...した時 ...shita toki, ...したとき ...shita toki, ...したら ...shitara |
| 中文 | 當 /当 dāng |
| Português | quando, assim que |
| Français | dès que |
| Deutsch | wenn, sobald |
| Italiano | quando |
| Ελληνικά | όταν ótan, αφού afoú |
| Română | când |
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
| العربية | حِينَمَا ḥīnamā |
| עברית | כש־ kshe- |
conj during the time that
| Español | cuando |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | ...の時 ...no toki, ...のとき ...no toki |
| 中文 | ...的時候 /...的时候 ... de shihou |
| हिन्दी | जब jab |
| Português | quando |
| Français | lorsque, quand |
| Deutsch | wenn, als |
| Italiano | quando |
| Ελληνικά | όταν ótan |
| Română | când |
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
| Tiếng Việt | khi |
| العربية | عِنْدَمَا ʕindamā, لَمَّا lammā, حِينَ ḥīna, إِذ ʔiḏ |
| עברית | כאשר ka'asher |
conj at what time; at which time
| Español | cuando |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 언제 eonje |
| 日本語 | 何時 itsu, いつ itsu |
| 中文 | 什麼時候 /什么时候 shénme shíhòu, 幾時 /几时 jǐshí, 何時 /何时 héshí |
| हिन्दी | जब jab, कब kab, यदा yadā |
| Português | quando |
| Français | quand |
| Deutsch | wenn, als |
| Italiano | quando |
| Ελληνικά | πότε póte |
| Română | când |
| Русский | когда́ kogdá, в то вре́мя как v to vrémja kak |
| Tiếng Việt | khi nào, khi, lúc nào, bao giờ |
| العربية | مَتَى matā |
| עברית | מתי matay |
conj since; given the fact that; considering that
| Tiếng Việt | khi |
|---|
pron what time; which time
| Español | cuando |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 何時 itsu, いつ itsu |
| Português | quando |
| Français | quand |
| Deutsch | wann |
| Italiano | quando |
| Ελληνικά | πότε póte |
| Română | când |
| Русский | когда́ kogdá |
| עברית | מָתַי matái |
Talk about this word "when." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/when. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. when. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/when "when." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/when.Cite this
@misc{when_2026,
title = {when},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/when},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
