pendent que, mentre que

While

Level 4

Put pendent que or mentre que between two clauses to say that both things happen at the same time.

How It Works

WordExampleEnglish
pendent queLegís pendent que manjam.He reads while we eat.
mentre queMaria canta mentre que Joan trabalha.Maria sings while Joan works.
pendent quePendent que Joan dormís, Maria legís.While Joan sleeps, Maria reads.

The two words mean the same here. Mentre que is more frequent in print than pendent que.

The clause can come first or second, and the verb is in the indicative. For a past scene, use the imperfect: Mentre que ploviá, legiguèri un libre (While it was raining, I read a book).

Without que, pendent is a preposition: pendent l'ivèrn (during the winter). Before a clause, que is required.

Examples (4)

  1. Legís pendent que manjam.

    He reads while we eat.

    Pendent que joins two clauses with different subjects.

  2. Maria canta mentre que Joan trabalha.

    Maria sings while Joan works.

    Mentre que means the same as pendent que.

  3. Pendent que Joan dormís, Maria legís.

    While Joan sleeps, Maria reads.

    The clause with pendent que can come first.

  4. Mentre que ploviá, legiguèri un libre.

    While it was raining, I read a book.

    Ploviá is the imperfect, and legiguèri names the event.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out que.

    Legís pendent manjam.
    Legís pendent que manjam.

    Before a clause with its own verb, pendent needs que.

How It Connects

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

pendent que, mentre queLevel 4While

Learn This First

Pendent que and mentre que join two actions that happen together, so pendent and quand clauses come first.

Words in This Pattern

mentrependentque