Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[whiffycat]

Can someone tell me the difference between the following, please?

1 When I was watching TV,the phone rang.
2 The phone rang when I was watching TV.
3 When the phone rang,I was watching TV.
4 I was watching TV when the phone rang.

Thank you

[Suzanne]

Hello,

These are complex sentences, with past time clauses. They tell the relationship in time between two events. One of the events happened, or was in progress, when the other event happened.

In your sentences, you were already watching TV when the phone rang. All the sentences are correct. However, a native speaker would likely say one of these:
2 The phone rang when I was watching TV.
4 I was watching TV when the phone rang.

Does this help?

[Lorikeet]

I think we might also use "while" to show the idea of the event in progress:

The phone rang while I was watching TV.
While I was watching TV, the phone rang.
I was watching TV when the phone rang.
When the phone rang, I was watching TV.


I think all of these sentences would be used by a native speaker, depending on the context.