Chinese word

其间

Pronunciation

Pinyinqí jiān

Meaning

  • adverbmeanwhile

Example

他离开了，其间我等了半小时。tā lí kāi le qí jiān wǒ děng le bàn xiǎo shí

He left, and meanwhile I waited for half an hour.

Illustration for 其间 (meanwhile)

More examples

会议开了两个小时， 在其间我们讨论了计划的细节。huì yì kāi le liǎng gè xiǎo shí zài qí jiān wǒ men tǎo lùn le jì huà de xì jié

The meeting lasted two hours, and in the meantime we discussed the details of the plan.

Core concept

A particular stretch of time that contains an event or state within its boundaries.

Common phrases

  • 在其间zài qí jiān

    in the meantime

  • 其间发生qí jiān fā shēng

    happen during that time

  • 其间包括qí jiān bāo kuò

    include during that time

Similar words

当时dāng shí: At a particular time or moment, something happens or is true.
那时候nà shí hòu: Around that time, something happens or remains true in everyday speech.
同时tóng shí: Two or more things happen or continue at the same time.

Definition in Chinese

用作副词，表示在某一段时间内发生的动作或存在的状态，相当于“在那段时间里”。yòng zuò fù cí biǎo shì zài mǒu yí duàn shí jiān nèi fā shēng de dòng zuò huò cún zài de zhuàng tài xiāng dāng yú zài nà duàn shí jiān lǐ

Word origin

其 (qí, "that") + 间 (jiān, "interval") combines a pointing word with a bounded span, so a noun phrase meaning "that interval" came to be used adverbially for events occurring within it.

Usage tips

  • In everyday conversation, speakers often choose 这段时间 (zhè duàn shíjiān, "this period") or 那时候 (nà shíhou, "at that time"); 其间 (qíjiān, "during that interval") has a more compact, written tone.

Opposites

Word lists with this word