when was vs when did

Both 'when was' and 'when did' are correct, but they are used in different contexts. 'When was' is used to ask about the time of an event or situation in the past, while 'when did' is used to ask about the time an action or activity occurred in the past.

Last updated: April 07, 2024 • 691 views

when was

The phrase 'when was' is correct and commonly used to ask about the time of an event or situation in the past.

Use 'when was' to inquire about the timing of an event or situation that occurred in the past. It is often followed by a specific event or situation.

Examples:

When was the last time you saw her?
When was the party?
When was the decision made?

Show examples from the web [+]

eventTime - when was the measurement made
If so, when was it closed and what was the conclusion? 3.
And when was the painting sold?
Computer, when was this file created?
Before tonight, when was E last time you prayed?
So, when was this photo taken?
No, when was the accident?
Giulio, when was this house built?
Look, when was this plane built?
Jenna, when was the last message sent?
Where and when was this shot?
And-and the video - when was it made?
How and when was it repaired?
Now, when was that pyramid built?
And when was that text sent?
And when was Andrea's funeral?
But when was the "beginning"?
But when was the February Revolution, which preceded it?
The battle of Carachacumba, when was it?
Mrs. Murphy, when was Book Week?

Alternatives:

at what time was
at what point was
at what moment was
during which time was
during which period was

when did

The phrase 'when did' is correct and commonly used to ask about the time an action or activity occurred in the past.

Use 'when did' to inquire about the timing of an action or activity that took place in the past. It is often followed by a specific action or activity.

Examples:

When did you arrive?
When did they leave?
When did the meeting start?

Show examples from the web [+]

Since when did you start smoking?
Tell me, Jack, when did you first become...
She asked me when did I start to like him.
And when did Chandler leave Hong Kong?
I mean, since when did you become an expert in...
Since when did you become comedy relief?
Since when did you start asking permission?
Since when did you start spiking your chamomile?
Babe, when did you even think that you...
Since when did you start having anxiety attacks?
Second question: when did the Federal Government inform Euratom?
Since when did you become a liar?
And when did you hear the command to fire?
Since when did you become my counsellor?
Since when did you start smoking those?
So, Marc, when did you meet Kyle?
So when did you start teaching?
So when did you start living here?
So when did the headache start?
Since when did you get so light, Setsuko?

Alternatives:

at what time did
at what point did
at what moment did
during which time did
during which period did

What Our Customers Are Saying

Our customers love us! We have an average rating of 4.79 stars based on 283,125 votes.
Also check out our 2,100+ reviews on TrustPilot (4.9).

"Amazing! I like that the editors are REAL people and not A.I., like some use. The editors actually see clients as real people and not just apart of their job, and it shows. 💖"
moggie April 2025
"TextRanch has been a great help to me, especially at work because I often email my boss."
Jhey April 2025
"Thank you!"
Sachi Nakama July 2024
"I have literally been through chat, PI, claude, bard and bing and I got conflicting answers! Thank you! Human intelligence reigns!"
Retha July 2024
"Faster than AI"
CYNTHIA December 2023
"This was very helpful and I personally think this site is the best."
Kaden October 2023
"It was extremely thorough and very helpful!"
imperialelisa October 2023
"7 years without any disappointment. Always 100% satisfied. You guys are the best in the world at what you do. Thank you so much :)"
Zubair Alam October 2023
"In a world of text messages and online communication, this is great to have as a live tool. Thank you."
Selena October 2023
"Without textranch I would be stuck!"
宏祐 October 2023
"Accuracy and fast response. Personal comments from editor. Thank you."
Clh September 2023
"I wasn't aware of this service, it's fascinating and more reliable than standard IA tools available on the internet"
Arturo September 2023
"The fact that you can get reliable fast feedback on your texts."
Vinicius Antonio August 2023
"you guys are better than grammarly i'm being honest here"
ordinary July 2023
"OMG! This is really good than any other text correction tools I've used so far. Highly recommend this."
Vehan July 2023
"Very fast and accurate. thank you."
mojtaba July 2023
"I love this app because it's help to writing skills all of students ♥️"
Tarisini July 2023
"This was exactly the mistake I was looking for, the wording dind´t sound right at first. Better than grammarly!"
Ente July 2023
"The immediate help that I received was reassuring and very satisfactory. Thanks."
priiiyanshuu July 2023
"this helps A LOT for my studies."
kathnunez02 June 2023
"Woow!! I would never have expected such precision! Thank you soooo much!!"
Berta June 2023
"Real Time Editor and not AI. Many Thanks."
Priya June 2023
"The very first thing excites me about Textranch is how much your editors care."
sepideh June 2023
"The fact that texts are checked by human editors rather than by AI, etc. I appreciate this!"
Анна June 2023