Japanese word

すると

Pronunciation

Romajisuruto

Meaning

  • conjunctionthen

Example

ベルを鳴らしました。すると、先生が来ました。be ru o na ra shi ma shi ta su ru to sen sei ga ki ma shi ta

I rang the bell. Then, the teacher came.

Illustration for すると (then)

More examples

電源を入れました。すると、画面に時計が表示されました。den gen o i re ma shi ta su ru to ga men ni tokei ga hyō ji sa re ma shi ta

I turned on the power. Then, a clock appeared on the screen.

Core concept

Presents an event as the immediate development of what has just happened.

Common phrases

  • するとどうでしょうsu ru to dō de shō

    then what do you think happened

  • すると突然su ru to totsu zen

    then suddenly

Similar words

そうするとsōsuruto: It presents what happens as a consequence of the situation just described.
それからsorekara: It marks the next event in a simple sequence.

Definition in Japanese

ある事柄のあとに続いて起こる事柄を示す語。a ru koto gara no a to ni tsuzu i te o ko ru koto gara o shime su go

Word origin

すると (suruto) comes from する (suru, "do") followed by と (to, "when" or "if"), a combination that introduces a following event.

Usage tips

  • Speakers often use すると (suruto) to move a simple story from one event to the next, so it is common in short spoken narratives.

Word lists with this word