tijds

Tijds is a Dutch bound morpheme used to form compound words that relate to time or temporal aspects. Derived from tijd (time), it functions as a temporal prefix in terms that describe duration, period, and time-related concepts. It is not a standalone word; rather, it appears in compounds such as tijdsduur (duration), tijdsverschil (time difference), tijdsbeeld (depiction of a period), tijdsperiode (time period), and tijdsbesef (sense of time).

In usage, tijds serves to indicate that the modifying noun concerns temporal features. It is common in written Dutch, especially in academic, historical, or technical language. In everyday speech, speakers more often use semplice expressions or the base tijd rather than many tijds compounds. Tijds is distinct from tijdens, a preposition meaning during. While during introduces a temporal setting for an action, tijds accompanies another noun to form a time-related concept.

Examples include: De tijdsduur van de film is twee uur. Het tijdsbesef van een generatie verandert. De tijdsperiode van de Middeleeuwen is lang. These compounds illustrate how tijds helps compress temporal meaning into a single lexical unit. Overall, tijds is a productive though relatively formal element in Dutch that broadens the vocabulary for discussing time, chronology, and temporality.