Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 4: 9/21

同時(どうじ)

At the same time as, The instant, The moment, As well as

Structure Legend

Structure

Verb[る] + 同時(どうじ)
[な]Adjective + である + 同時(どうじ)
Noun + (である) + 同時(どうじ)

Details

  • Register

    Standard

  • 使用域

    一般

About と同時に

To convey that things are happening at the same time in Japanese, と同時(どうじ)に will often be used. This is a combination of the case marking particle と in its listing particle use, 同時(どうじ), a noun meaning 'the same time', and に, the case marking particle marking a location.
同時(どうじ)に translates as 'at the same time as (A)', 'the instant that (A)', or 'as well as (A)'. In sentences that use this grammar structure, (A) is considered to be the primary event, but any (B) or (C) events are not considered any less important.
  • サイレン()った同時(どうじ)犯人(はんにん)()げた。
    As the siren went off, the criminal ran away.
  • この機械(きかい)便利(べんり)である同時(どうじ)危険(きけん)である(ため)()つけて使用(しよう)てください
    This machine is useful, but at the same time, it is very dangerous, so please use it with caution.
  • その(ひと)博士(はかせ)である同時(どうじ)宇宙飛行士(うちゅうひこうし)でもある
    That person is a scientist and also an astronaut.
In the case of nouns and な-Adjectives, である is often omitted.
  • (わたし)(いえ)自宅(じたく)同時(どうじ)オフィスでもある
    My place is a house, and at the same time it is also my office.
While the literal meaning of と同時(どうじ)に is 'at the same time', this expression is also regularly used when listing multiple roles or functions that someone/thing has. This comes across as 'as well as', but still carries the 'at the same time nuance'.
  • 野菜(やさい)同時(どうじ)(にく)(なべ)()てください
    Please throw the vegetables and meat into the pot.
  • カギ同時(どうじ)携帯(けいたい)どこか(わす)てきた
    I lost my keys as well as my phone somewhere.

Examples

  • 演技(えんぎ)()わる同時(どうじ)観客(かんきゃく)から拍手(はくしゅ)()こった。

    The audience erupted in applause the instant the show was over.

  • 演奏(えんそう)(はじ)まる同時(どうじ)(かれ)(ねむ)ってしまった。

    The moment the performance started, he fell asleep.

    'At the same time as'.

  • (みち)横断(おうだん)()わる同時(どうじ)信号(しんごう)(あか)()わった。

    The instant I crossed the street, the traffic light turned red.

  • ()()同時(どうじ)髪型(かみがた)()えてみようと(おも)っています。

    I am thinking about changing my hairstyle the instant I move.

  • 目覚(めざ)める同時(どうじ)着替(きが)えて()かけた。

    The moment I woke up, I got dressed and went out.

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と同時に – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (4 in total)

  • Daru

    Daru

    About 1 year ago

    Added the video and fixed the resources!

  • imsamuka

    imsamuka

    About 2 months ago

    If と同時に uses the と listing particle, can we list various things before と同時に? There’s a difference in nuance in this case?

  • IcyIceBear

    IcyIceBear

    About 2 months ago

    I see it as more of a “together” particle here. Like サムと一緒に together with sam. With the same time as と同時に. Besides that I don’t know if it would work for multiple things. Another translation is “the instant” so not a lot of things can be done in that time frame. There’s probably better grammar to use in that case like 間に

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