Chinese word

那时

Pronunciation

Pinyinnà shí

Meaning

  • adverbthen

Example

那时我还在上学。nà shí wǒ hái zài shàng xué

I was still in school then.

Illustration for 那时 (then)

More examples

那时我们还很年轻。nà shí wǒ men hái hěn nián qīng

We were still young then.

Core concept

A signpost points back to a past time and starts the scene from there.

Common phrases

  • 那时还nà shí hái

    still then

  • 那时已经nà shí yǐ jīng

    already then

  • 那时正在nà shí zhèng zài

    be in progress then

Similar words

当时dāng shí: Marks a particular past time and describes what was happening or the situation around it.
那时候nà shí hòu: Refers to a period in the past when experiences or events took place.
以前yǐ qián: Refers to a time before a stated or understood point, describing past states or events.

Definition in Chinese

用于回忆或叙述中引出当时情景的时间副词，常作为叙述过去场面的起点用语。yòng yú huí yì huò xù shù zhōng yǐn chū dāng shí qíng jǐng de shí jiān fù cí cháng zuò wéi xù shù guò qù chǎng miàn de qí diǎn yòng yǔ

Word origin

那 (nà, "that") + 时 (shí, "time") combines a pointing word with a time word, forming 那时 (nàshí, "then") for a time already under discussion.

Usage tips

  • English then can mean the next step, but this Chinese adverb points to a time in the past rather than to what happens next.

Other meanings

  • in those daysadverb
  • at that momentadverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word