when or while

We use both when and while as subordinating conjunctions to introduce adverbial clauses of time.
They mean during the time that and indicate that something is or was happening when something
else occurred:

The prisoners escaped when / while the prison warders were eating their lunch.
When / While the prison warders were eating their lunch, the prisoners escaped.
Note that we can also use as and whilst in the same way, although they sometimes sounds more
formal or literary

As the sun went down, I sipped a rum and coke on the balcony.
I sipped a rum and coke on the balcony whilst the sun went slowly down on the horizon.
Note that during, which also introduces a longer period of time, is a preposition which is use with
a noun or noun phrase:

I first met my future wife during my stay in Casablanca.

I first met my future wife while I was staying in Casablanca.

when not while

We use when, not while, to talk about something that occurs at the same time as a longer action or
event that is described in the main clause:

I was asleep in my chair when Dora rang to say she wasn't coming home.
We were playing monopoly when the lights went off.
We also use when, not while, to talk about one event that happens immediately after another and
to talk about periods of time in the past.

When the lights went out, everybody groaned: "Oh no, not another power cut!"
When I was a little boy, power cuts were very frequent, but that was just after the war.
When can also be used instead of whenever, meaning every time that:

I always visit my mother-in-law when I'm in Manchester.

I always visit my mother-in-law whenever I'm in Manchester.

while not when

We often prefer while to when to describe the longer action of two events or to talk about two
longer actions that go on simultaneously:

Dora left a message on the voice mail while I was asleep in the chair.
While I was writing my Christmas cards, the children were decorating the tree.
I cooked the supper while Jenny did the ironing.
Note from the above examples that while a progressive tense is normally used to describe the
longer action associated with a while time clause, simple tenses are also possible.

Note also that it is often possible to omit subject + be in when- and while-clauses if the main and
subordinate clauses refer to the same subject:

When (you are) crossing the road, be careful to look right, left and right again.
They came across human remains while (they were) excavating the site.

while to contrast ideas

While is not used only used to introduce adverbial clauses of time. In more formal usage, it is used
to link or balance ideas that contrast each other:

While I am happy for us all to eat at home, I don't want to spend hours in the kitchen preparing the
food.
While the news from the front has so far been good, there will almost certainly be days when we
must expect heavy casualties.
Note in this usage the while-clause is normally placed as the first of the contrasting points.

meanwhile = during this time

Meanwhile, meaning during this time, is a linking adverb which connects and contrasts ideas
between two sentences. It indicates that one event is going on at the same time as another:

Slice and brush the aubergines with oil and bake in the oven till soft. Meanwhile, melt some butter
in a small pan…
Why don't you prepare the boats ready for the water?Meanwhile, I'll check to see that we've got
enough oars.

a while = a short time

Note that when while functions as a noun, it is nearly always used with an indefinite article:

I haven't seen you around for a while. Where have you been?
Let's just wait a little while longer. He's bound to turn up eventually.
If you would like more practice more please visit our Message Board in the You, Me and Us part
of our website.

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Difference Between WHILE And WHEN

Hi students, it’s Shayna, your teacher from espressoenglish.net. Today, I’m going to answer a
very good question from a student who asked about the difference between while and when,
because they seem to mean the same thing. We use while and when when two things are
happening at the same time.
Before I get started, I hope you’re watching me live today. If you’re here watching this lesson,
then please like it so that I know you are watching. All right. This is a really good question about
while and when and I actually had to do some research and think about it a little bit in order to
give you a clear answer.

TWO SIMULTANEOUS CONTINUOUS ACTIONS = WHILE

Let me explain, we use while and when when two things are happening at the same time. Now,
when we have two continuous actions happening at the same, then we usually use while. Right
now, I’m recording a video while my husband is working. We have two continuous action, I ’m
recording and my husband is working. I’m recording a video while my husband is working.

Or here’s an example in the past, last night, I was watching TV while my father was sleeping.
Again, we have two continuous actions. I was watching TV and my father was sleeping. I was
watching TV while my father was sleeping. With two continuous actions, we usually use while.

TWO SINGLE ACTIONS AT THE SAME TIME / ONE IMMEDIATELY AFTER ANOTHER =
WHEN
Now, when we have two single actions that happen at the same time or one happens right after
another one, then we tend to use when. For example, I picked up the phone when it rang. First, the
phone rang, and then immediately I picked up the phone.
You can see that we have two verbs there in the simple past, not continuous. The phone rang and I
picked up. I picked up the phone when it rang. We have two single actions that happened very
close together, almost at the same time and so we use when.

Another good example would be when I get home, I take off my shoes. That’s also two single
actions. I get home and I take off my shoes. When I get home, I take off my shoes. Or you could
say it the other way, I take off my shoes when I get home.

Both while and when are used when two things happen at the same time, but we tend to use while
with two continuous actions and when with two single actions.

AGES = WHEN
We also use when with ages. For example, I got my driver’s license when I was 16 years old. We
wouldn’t say while I was 16 years old. Or, I went to Brazil for the first time when I was 19.
When you have an age, then use when.

I could also have a continuous verb. For example, when I was 25, I was working in New York city.
There I have a continuous action but because I’m talking about a specific time period, when I
was 25, I use when and not while. I was working in New York city when I was 25 years old.

ONE SINGLE ACTION, ONE CONTINUOUS ACTION

Now, things start to get a little more complicated when you have two actions but one is a single
action and one is continuous. That would be an example like this, “He called while or when I
was sleeping.” Now, we have one continuous action and we have one single action (he called).
Well, in this case, you can actually use either one. You can say he called while I sleeping or you
can say he called when I was sleeping. They’re both correct. All right.

Now, we usually while or when before a continuous action. But if I change the sentence around
and the word comes before the single action, then I use when and not while.

If I say “I was sleeping when he called,” then I have to use when because it comes before a
single action. But if the word comes before the continuous actions and we have a one time and a
continuous, then I can use either one, he called while I was sleeping or he called when I was
sleeping.

Another good example of this would be if you’re driving home from work and you get into an
accident. You could say “I got into an accident (that’s the single action) while I was driving
home or when I was driving home.” Both are correct.

But if we change the sentence around, then we would say “I was driving home from work when I
got into an accident,” because when in this case comes before the single action.

I would love to see you try these words out by leaving a comment using either while or when or
both. Leave a comment and I will let you know if it’s correct.
WHICH COURSE TO TAKE?
If you’ve been watching this video and you love my lessons, you might be thinking, “Well, I
want to take a course with Shayna,” but I have actually a lot of courses and you might be
wondering which one to take or which one to start with.

Well, the good news is that if you actually want to get all of my courses, that’s everything from
business English to speaking, vocabulary and all of my eBooks on confusing words and
collocations and slang, that there’s actually a pretty big discount.

You can get a 35% discount if you buy what I call the Complete Program which is all of the
Espresso English eBooks and courses.

If you’re interested in that, please check out the link in this video. I hope you’ve learned a little
bit more today about when to use while and when to use when. Thank you so much for your
question. Thanks for watching and I will see you next time. Bye-bye.

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