când

Când is a Romanian word that functions as both an interrogative adverb and a subordinating conjunction, translating to "when" in English. It introduces questions about time and can begin a time clause within a sentence. Its use is essential for expressing timing, punctuality, and temporal relationships in Romanian.

As an interrogative word, când appears at the beginning or inside questions: "Când pleci?" or "Știi când vine?" As a conjunction, it connects a main clause with a dependent clause indicating time: "Spune-mi când ajunge." In such clauses, the tense of the dependent verb reports a future, present, or past action relative to the main clause.

Orthography and etymology: când is written with the circumflex on the a (când) and is not to be confused with "cand" in non-diacritic texts. It derives from the Latin quando, cognate with Italian quando, Spanish cuando, French quand, and Portuguese quando.

Related forms and usage notes: "cândva" means "someday" or "at some time." The phrase "de fiecare dată când" means "every time when" or, more idiomatically, "each time that." These forms illustrate how când functions across different temporal constructions in Romanian.