Introduction
有时候 (yǒu shíhou) sits one rung below 经常 (jīngcháng) on the frequency ladder: not often, not never, just now and then. Its best trick is doubling up — 有时候……有时候…… — to say you do one thing some days and another thing on others.
Overview
Structure: (Subj. +) 有时候 (yǒu shíhou) + Verb
| Pattern | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Subj. + 有时候 + V | 我有时候在家吃。(Wǒ yǒu shíhou zài jiā chī.) | Sometimes I eat at home. |
| 有时候 at the front | 有时候他不来。(Yǒu shíhou tā bù lái.) | Sometimes he doesn't come. |
| 有时候……有时候…… | 有时候看书，有时候看电视。(Yǒu shíhou kàn shū, yǒu shíhou kàn diànshì.) | Sometimes I read, sometimes I watch TV. |
| 有时 (written) | 有时他也来。(Yǒushí tā yě lái.) | Sometimes he comes too. |
| Compare with 经常 | 我经常去。(Wǒ jīngcháng qù.) | I go often. |
Where it sits is free, which is unusual for a Chinese adverb:
- ✓ 我有时候去。(Wǒ yǒu shíhou qù.) ✓ 有时候我去。(Yǒu shíhou wǒ qù.) — both are natural.
- The frequency ladder: 经常 (jīngcháng) → 有时候 (yǒu shíhou) → 不常 (bù cháng) → 从来不 (cónglái bù).
- In the doubled form the subject is said once, at most: 有时候看书，有时候看电视。(Yǒu shíhou kàn shū, yǒu shíhou kàn diànshì.)
- Do not mix it up with 那时候 (nà shíhou), which means "back then", or 的时候 (de shíhou), which builds a time clause.
Examples
我有时候在家吃，有时候在外面吃。
Wǒ yǒu shíhou zài jiā chī, yǒu shíhou zài wàimiàn chī.
Sometimes I eat at home, sometimes out.
他有时候来得很早。
Tā yǒu shíhou lái de hěn zǎo.
Sometimes he arrives very early.
有时候我也不太清楚。
Yǒu shíhou wǒ yě bú tài qīngchu.
Sometimes I'm not too sure either.
北京有时候很冷。
Běijīng yǒu shíhou hěn lěng.
Beijing is very cold sometimes.
我有时候坐地铁，有时候走路。
Wǒ yǒu shíhou zuò dìtiě, yǒu shíhou zǒulù.
Sometimes I take the subway, sometimes I walk.
他有时候不来上课。
Tā yǒu shíhou bù lái shàng kè.
Sometimes he doesn't come to class.
Usage Notes
- 有时候 (yǒu shíhou) and 有时 (yǒushí) are the same word; the short one belongs to writing, the long one to speech.
- Putting it at the very front frames the whole sentence as an exception to what usually happens.
- The doubled form does not need 和 (hé) or any other joiner — a comma is enough.
- It answers 你常……吗？(Nǐ cháng… ma?) perfectly when the honest answer is "now and then": 有时候。(Yǒu shíhou.)
- Like 经常 (jīngcháng), it describes a habit, so it does not take 了 (le).