When in Different Languages
Discover 'When' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'when' holds a significant place in our language, denoting time and condition. It's a small word with a big impact, shaping the narrative of our stories and the course of our conversations. Culturally, 'when' is just as important, as it allows us to connect, understand, and relate to each other's experiences.
Moreover, understanding the translation of 'when' in different languages can open up a world of possibilities. It can help you navigate new cultures, communicate with people from different backgrounds, and gain a deeper appreciation for the richness and diversity of human language.
For instance, did you know that 'when' translates to 'wann' in German and 'quand' in French? Or that in Japanese, 'when' is expressed as 'itsu' in informal settings and ' Shirabe temo' in more formal contexts?
Explore the many faces of 'when' and discover the beauty of language and culture. Here's a list of translations of 'when' in 25 languages to get you started.
When
When in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | wanneer | ||
| Afrikaans "wanneer" originally meant "just when" but over time it acquired its current sense | |||
| Amharic | መቼ | ||
| In Ethiopian geez, | |||
| Hausa | yaushe | ||
| Although 'yaushe' means 'when' and 'lokaci' also mean 'time,' you cannot say 'lokaci nake dawowa?' Instead of 'lokaci,' one must say ' lokacin' for it to be correct. | |||
| Igbo | mgbe ole | ||
| The Igbo word "mgbe ole" is etymologically linked to the concept of "old time" or "ancient era". | |||
| Malagasy | rahoviana | ||
| The word "rahoviana" derives from the Malayo-Polynesian root *sa-huwa-, meaning "one day" or "on the day". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | liti | ||
| In addition to meaning "when," "liti" can also mean "since," "while," or "if." | |||
| Shona | riinhi | ||
| The word "riinhi" can also be used to mean "as long as" or "until." | |||
| Somali | goorma | ||
| The Somali word "goorma" not only means "when" but can also be used to refer to a specific time or occasion. | |||
| Sesotho | neng | ||
| The word "neng" (when) in Sesotho has possible connections to ideas of "time" and "circumstance". | |||
| Swahili | lini | ||
| The word "lini" in Swahili is derived from the Proto-Bantu word "-li-ni," which also means "time." | |||
| Xhosa | nini | ||
| The word 'nini' also means 'just now' or 'some time ago'. | |||
| Yoruba | nigbawo | ||
| The word "Nigbawo" also means "at the time of" or "during the time of" in Yoruba. | |||
| Zulu | nini | ||
| The isiZulu word "nini" is also an interrogative used to ask "what?" and "why?" | |||
| Bambara | waati | ||
| Ewe | ɣe ka ɣi | ||
| Kinyarwanda | ryari | ||
| Lingala | ntango | ||
| Luganda | ddi | ||
| Sepedi | neng | ||
| Twi (Akan) | berɛ bɛn | ||
When in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | متى | ||
| The Arabic word "متى" also appears in the compound word "وقت," which means "time," and the root of "متى" refers to "a point in time" in some Semitic languages. | |||
| Hebrew | מתי | ||
| The word "מתי" (when) in Hebrew can also refer to "death" or "the dead." | |||
| Pashto | كله | ||
| The word "كله" in Pashto is also used in the sense of "since", "whenever", and "until". | |||
| Arabic | متى | ||
| The Arabic word "متى" also appears in the compound word "وقت," which means "time," and the root of "متى" refers to "a point in time" in some Semitic languages. | |||
When in Western European Languages
| Albanian | kur | ||
| The word "kur" in Albanian can also mean "since" or "whenever". | |||
| Basque | noiz | ||
| The word "noiz" can mean both "when" and "time" in Basque, and is related to the word "noizbehinka," meaning "sometimes." | |||
| Catalan | quan | ||
| The etymology of the Catalan word "Quan" ("when") can be traced back to the Latin word "Quam". | |||
| Croatian | kada | ||
| In Serbo-Croatian, 'kada' can also mean 'sometimes', a relic of the older sense of 'at some point in time'. | |||
| Danish | hvornår | ||
| The words _hvor_ (where) and _når_ (when) can be combined into _hvornår_ (when). | |||
| Dutch | wanneer | ||
| Derived from Middle Dutch "wanne" (interrogative when) that evolved into "wenner" and, from 1100 onwards, into modern "wanneer" | |||
| English | when | ||
| The word 'when' derives from the Old English 'hwenne' and was initially an adverb referring to time or to an instance of time. | |||
| French | quand | ||
| Quand originated from 'quando' in Latin, and it can also mean 'although' when used with subjunctive mood. | |||
| Frisian | wannear | ||
| The word 'wannear' can also mean 'whenever' in Frisian. | |||
| Galician | cando | ||
| In the Galician phrase `cando chova`, the word `cando` means `whenever` (literally, `when it rains`), while in `cando queiras` it means `whenever you want`. | |||
| German | wann | ||
| "Wann" in German can also mean "if" and comes from the Old High German "hwanne," meaning "when" or "at what time." | |||
| Icelandic | hvenær | ||
| The word "hvenær" in Icelandic is derived from the Old Norse phrase "hva nær," meaning "what near," indicating a point in time relative to a specific event. | |||
| Irish | cathain | ||
| The Irish word Cathain can also refer to an event that occurs repeatedly or to the time when something is due. | |||
| Italian | quando | ||
| In Latin, 'quando' also means 'how much' or 'how many' | |||
| Luxembourgish | wéini | ||
| "Wéini" derives from Old High German "hwenne" (Old English "hwænne"), meaning "at what time, when". | |||
| Maltese | meta | ||
| Meta can also mean 'while' in Maltese and is cognate to the prepositions 'meta' in Ancient Greek, 'metá' in Spanish and 'meta' in Albanian. | |||
| Norwegian | når | ||
| "Når" can also be used to express uncertainty e.g.: Jeg tror det er søndag når (I think it's Sunday when) and possibility: Det kan være søndag når (It might be Sunday when). | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | quando | ||
| "Quando" ultimately derives from the Latin "quando" meaning "at some time", and can also be used to mean "sometimes" or "once in a while" in Portuguese. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | cuin | ||
| In some parts of Scotland, "cuin" can also mean "how long" or "how far". | |||
| Spanish | cuando | ||
| The Spanish word "cuando" derives from the Latin "quando," meaning "at what time" or "at what moment." | |||
| Swedish | när | ||
| The word "när" in Swedish originally meant "close to" and was used to refer to both time and space. | |||
| Welsh | pryd | ||
| The word "pryd" in Welsh also means "time", "space", "season", and "moment". | |||
When in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | калі | ||
| In Old Belarusian, "калі" was also used to mean "if" or "whether" | |||
| Bosnian | kada | ||
| Bosnian “kada” originates from Proto-Slavic “kъdy” (“at the time when”), also related to English “quandary” from Old French “quand” (“when”). | |||
| Bulgarian | кога | ||
| The word "кога" also means "what time" in Bulgarian. | |||
| Czech | když | ||
| The word "když" can also be used to mean "if" in certain contexts. | |||
| Estonian | millal | ||
| The Estonian word "millal" also means "at what time" or "how soon". | |||
| Finnish | kun | ||
| The word "kun" may also refer to "if" or "because". | |||
| Hungarian | mikor | ||
| "Mikor" is sometimes misunderstood as coming from "mi kor", meaning "what now". | |||
| Latvian | kad | ||
| In the Livonian language, “kad” means “until”. | |||
| Lithuanian | kada | ||
| The Lithuanian word "kada" can also refer to "suddenly" or "if", depending on the context. | |||
| Macedonian | кога | ||
| In Old Church Slavonic, "кога" initially meant "time" and "occasion". | |||
| Polish | gdy | ||
| Originally deriving from the Old Polish “godzi” (“worthy,” “appropriate”), “gdy” came to replace other earlier words for “when,” including "jęli” and "koli" | |||
| Romanian | cand | ||
| Possibly derived from the Latin word "quando" ("when"). | |||
| Russian | когда | ||
| The Russian word "когда" can also mean "if" or "whenever" in some contexts. | |||
| Serbian | када | ||
| The Serbian word "када" can also mean "if" or "whenever". | |||
| Slovak | kedy | ||
| The word "kedy" can also mean "sometimes" or "once". | |||
| Slovenian | kdaj | ||
| The word "kdaj" can also mean "at some time" or "sometime". | |||
| Ukrainian | коли | ||
| The Ukrainian word "коли" has Proto-Slavic origins and can also mean "if". | |||
When in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | কখন | ||
| The word "কখন" may also be used in Bengali to indicate an uncertain or indefinite future time. | |||
| Gujarati | ક્યારે | ||
| Hindi | कब | ||
| The word "कब" (kab) in Hindi can also mean "maybe" or "perhaps". | |||
| Kannada | ಯಾವಾಗ | ||
| The word "ಯಾವಾಗ" in Kannada derives from the Proto-Dravidian root *ē-va- or *yāva-, meaning "time". | |||
| Malayalam | എപ്പോൾ | ||
| The word "എപ്പോൾ" (when) in Malayalam can also mean "if" or "in case". | |||
| Marathi | कधी | ||
| "कधी" means "sometime" or "once" and can also be used to express "if" or "whether" in Marathi. | |||
| Nepali | कहिले | ||
| The word "कहिले" in Nepali can also mean "sometimes" or "occasionally". | |||
| Punjabi | ਜਦੋਂ | ||
| The word "ਜਦੋਂ" is used not only to mean "when" but also as an interrogative particle, meaning "why" or "on what occasion"} | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | කවදා ද | ||
| The Sinhala word "කවදා ද" also means "at what time". | |||
| Tamil | எப்பொழுது | ||
| The word "எப்பொழுது" (when) can also mean "whenever" or "sometime" in Tamil. | |||
| Telugu | ఎప్పుడు | ||
| Urdu | کب | ||
| The Urdu word "کب" (kab) has additional meanings such as "sometime" and "maybe". | |||
When in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 什么时候 | ||
| 什么时候 (shénme shíhou) is composed of the elements 什么 (shénme, what), 时 (shí, time), and 候 (hòu, moment or opportune moment). | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 什麼時候 | ||
| 什麼時候 literally means 'what time', however, it is commonly used to ask 'when' something happens in general. | |||
| Japanese | いつ | ||
| In Classical Japanese, 「いつ」 could mean "the time" or "the weather." | |||
| Korean | 언제 | ||
| “언제” means “when it rains” in Sino-Korean, referring to events that happen when certain conditions are met. | |||
| Mongolian | хэзээ | ||
| In Classical Mongolian, “хэзээ” meant “when” or “why” and originated from a Mongolian word for “to interrogate.” | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ဘယ်တော့လဲ | ||
When in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | kapan | ||
| The word "kapan" in Indonesian is thought to be derived from the Proto-Austronesian word "ka-pana" meaning "at which time". | |||
| Javanese | nalika | ||
| The word "nalika" can also refer to a specific time period in Javanese, especially in its usage in Javanese astrology and in conjunction with the traditional Javanese calendar system. | |||
| Khmer | ពេលណា | ||
| Lao | ເມື່ອໃດ | ||
| Malay | bila | ||
| The word "bila" in Malay can also mean "if" or "where". | |||
| Thai | เมื่อไหร่ | ||
| เมื่อไหร่ comes from the Proto-Tai word *hɔŋ-nai meaning "at what time, when". | |||
| Vietnamese | khi nào | ||
| "Khi nào" is a compound word consisting of "khi" (time) and "nào" (interrogative particle), meaning "what time" or "when". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kailan | ||
When in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | nə vaxt | ||
| A combination of the Azerbaijani words 'nə' meaning 'what' and 'vaxt' meaning 'time', 'nə vaxt' can also be translated as 'what time'. | |||
| Kazakh | қашан | ||
| The Kazakh word қашан "when" is also used in the sense of "since" in compound words. | |||
| Kyrgyz | качан | ||
| The word "качан" in Kyrgyz is derived from the Proto-Turkic word "kanča" meaning "how long ago?" | |||
| Tajik | кай | ||
| The original meaning of the Tajik word "кай" is "then", but it gained the additional meaning of "when" due to its widespread use as a question-word. | |||
| Turkmen | haçan | ||
| Uzbek | qachon | ||
| Qachon can also mean 'suddenly' and 'at once'. | |||
| Uyghur | قاچان | ||
When in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | i ka manawa | ||
| The word | |||
| Maori | āhea | ||
| "Āhea" can also describe the concept of a time in the future and refers to a point beyond the present moment. | |||
| Samoan | afea | ||
| In other Polynesian languages, such as Tahitian and Cook Islands Māori "afea" means "if". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kailan | ||
| The Tagalog word "kailan'' is a cognate of the Sanskrit "kada", which means "at which season or time". | |||
When in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | kunawsa | ||
| Guarani | araka'épa | ||
When in International Languages
| Esperanto | kiam | ||
| "Kiam" is related to Esperanto's "kio" for "what" and "tiu" for "that". | |||
| Latin | quod | ||
| The Latin word "quod" also means "because" or "that". | |||
When in Others Languages
| Greek | όταν | ||
| In Ancient Greek, "όταν" also referred to a rare flower and a type of fish found in the Nile. | |||
| Hmong | thaum | ||
| In the past, some Hmong dialects used "thaum" for both the word "when" and "because". | |||
| Kurdish | heke | ||
| The word "heke" in Kurdish can also mean "when" or "if" in the context of conditional statements. | |||
| Turkish | ne zaman | ||
| The word "ne zaman" literally translates to "what time" in Turkish. | |||
| Xhosa | nini | ||
| The word 'nini' also means 'just now' or 'some time ago'. | |||
| Yiddish | ווען | ||
| ווען can also refer to an indeterminate time or condition | |||
| Zulu | nini | ||
| The isiZulu word "nini" is also an interrogative used to ask "what?" and "why?" | |||
| Assamese | কেতিয়া | ||
| Aymara | kunawsa | ||
| Bhojpuri | कब | ||
| Dhivehi | ކޮންއިރަކު | ||
| Dogri | कदूं | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kailan | ||
| Guarani | araka'épa | ||
| Ilocano | no | ||
| Krio | ustɛm | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | کەی | ||
| Maithili | जखन | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯀꯔꯝꯕ ꯃꯇꯝꯗ | ||
| Mizo | engtikah | ||
| Oromo | yoom | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | କେବେ | ||
| Quechua | haykaq | ||
| Sanskrit | कदा | ||
| Tatar | кайчан | ||
| Tigrinya | መዓዝ | ||
| Tsonga | rini | ||