kamēr

While: Kamēr

Level 3

Kamēr means while. It starts a clause about an action that runs at the same time as the main one: Kamēr tu gatavo, es uzklāšu galdu (While you cook, I will set the table).

How It Works

1. Two things at the same time. The kamēr clause names the background action, and the main clause says what happens during it:

  • Kamēr bērni guļ, mēs varam mierīgi parunāt. (While the children are asleep, we can talk in peace.)
  • Es klausos podkāstus, kamēr braucu uz darbu. (I listen to podcasts while I travel to work.)

The clause can come before or after the main clause. Either way, a comma separates the two.

2. Tense. For something happening now or about to happen, the present works: Kamēr tu gatavo, es uzklāšu galdu. For a longer stretch of time that is still to come, the kamēr clause usually takes the future too, just as after kad: Kamēr tu būsi prom, es pabarošu kaķi (While you are away, I will feed the cat).

3. Until. When the main action lasts up to the moment the other one happens, kamēr means until: Maisi, kamēr cukurs izšķīst (Stir until the sugar dissolves). The word līdz can say the same thing: Pagaidi, līdz es atnākšu (Wait until I come).

4. Whereas, in casual speech. In everyday talk kamēr can also contrast two people or things: Es dzeru kafiju, kamēr viņa dzer tēju (I drink coffee, whereas she drinks tea). Dictionaries mark this use as conversational. In careful writing, bet or turpretī is the safer choice.

Tip: kamēr needs a verb after it. If you only have a noun, say brokastu laikā (during breakfast) or darba laikā (during work).

Examples (5)

  1. Kamēr tu gatavo, es uzklāšu galdu.

    While you cook, I will set the table.

    The kamēr clause comes first and ends with a comma.

  2. Kamēr bērni guļ, mēs varam mierīgi parunāt.

    While the children are asleep, we can talk in peace.

  3. Es klausos podkāstus, kamēr braucu uz darbu.

    I listen to podcasts while I travel to work.

    Here the kamēr clause comes second. The subject es can be left out because the ending of braucu already shows who is travelling.

  4. Kamēr tu būsi prom, es pabarošu kaķi.

    While you are away, I will feed the cat.

    The time is still to come, so both clauses use the future.

  5. Maisi, kamēr cukurs izšķīst.

    Stir until the sugar dissolves.

    Here kamēr means until: you keep stirring up to the moment the sugar dissolves.

Common Mistakes

  • Using kamēr before a noun to mean during.

    Kamēr brokastis mēs runājām par ceļojumu.
    Brokastu laikā mēs runājām par ceļojumu.

    Kamēr must start a clause with a verb. With a noun, use the genitive and laikā: brokastu laikā (during breakfast). You can also say Kamēr mēs ēdām brokastis, mēs runājām.

  • Leaving out the comma between the kamēr clause and the main clause.

    Kamēr tu gatavo es uzklāšu galdu.
    Kamēr tu gatavo, es uzklāšu galdu.

    A kamēr clause is a subordinate clause, and Latvian always separates it from the main clause with a comma.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

kamērLevel 3While: Kamēr

Learn This First

Kamēr joins a time clause.

Words in This Pattern

kamēr