小时候

• Pinyin: xiǎo shí hou
• Hanzi breakdown: 小 = small; 时 = 日 (sun) + 寸 (inch), meaning time; 候 = 亻(person) + 侯 (marquis, phonetic), meaning period/wait

Meaning

Childhood; when one was young. Refers to the period of time when someone was a child.

A very common time phrase used to reminisce about childhood or early youth. Usually placed at the beginning of a sentence or clause as a time adverbial. Different from 小的时候, which is a slightly longer variant with the same meaning. Often triggers nostalgic conversations about food, games, and family.

Examples

1. 我小时候住在北京。 I lived in Beijing when I was a child.
2. 小时候，我最喜欢吃奶奶做的饭。 When I was a child, I liked eating grandma's cooking the most.
3. 他小时候的梦想是当老师。 His childhood dream was to become a teacher.

Usage Guide

Context: reminiscing, storytelling, conversation

Tone: nostalgic

Do Say

• 你小时候喜欢做什么？(What did you like to do as a child?)
• 小时候的事我还记得很清楚。(I still remember things from my childhood very clearly.)

Don't Say

• 我小时候在大学学习 (Don't use 小时候 for your university years — 小时候 specifically means childhood, roughly before age 12; use 上大学的时候 for college years)

Origin & History

小 (xiǎo, small/young) + 时候 (shíhou, time/period). Literally 'small time' — the time when one was small, i.e. childhood.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal