The word when stands among the most essential temporal markers in the English tongue, serving both to frame questions concerning time and to introduce clauses that situate actions within the stream of moments. In the Elizabethan period (c. 1558–1603), this humble adverb carried the same interrogative and relative functions it bears today, yet its pronunciation differed markedly from modern usage.
In Shakespeare’s English, when retained the aspirated /hw/ onset that modern Received Pronunciation and General American have largely abandoned. The Elizabethan speaker would have pronounced it /hwen/, with distinct breath before the vowel—a feature still preserved in some Scottish and Irish dialects. This wh-cluster appeared throughout the language: what, where, which, why, and when all began with this aspirated sound, distinguishing them clearly from words beginning with simple /w/.
The fifteen examples in this lesson demonstrate when in its dual capacity: as an interrogative adverb posing questions about time, and as a relative adverb introducing temporal clauses. Through construed interlinear text, the autodidact learner will absorb the rhythms of Early Modern English while mastering both the meaning and the period pronunciation of each word.
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FAQ: What does “when” mean in Elizabethan English? In Elizabethan English, “when” (pronounced /hwen/) functions as both an interrogative adverb meaning “at what time?” and as a relative adverb meaning “at the time that.” It appears frequently in Shakespeare’s works in questions, temporal clauses, and conditional constructions.
Key Takeaways
The word when in Elizabethan English began with an aspirated /hw/ sound, not the simple /w/ of modern speech. This adverb served identically to its modern counterpart: asking about time and introducing temporal clauses. Period pronunciation preserved distinctions that have since merged in most English dialects. The Great Vowel Shift was ongoing during the Elizabethan era, affecting long vowels but leaving short vowels like the /e/ in “when” relatively stable. Understanding these phonological features helps readers appreciate Shakespeare’s rhymes and puns that depend upon period pronunciation.
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Key Period Features
The IPA transcriptions in this lesson reflect reconstructed Elizabethan pronunciation based on the scholarship of David Crystal, Fausto Cercignani, and E.J. Dobson. Key differences from Modern English include:
Vowels (Great Vowel Shift in Progress) -
Long /iː/ (as in “time”) → [təɪ] (diphthong with schwa onset) -
Long /eː/ (as in “meet”) → [eː] (pure monophthong, not yet raised) -
Long /aː/ (as in “name”) → [æː] or [ɛː] (not yet fully raised) -
Long /oː/ (as in “home”) → [oː] (pure monophthong) -
Long /uː/ (as in “moon”) → [uː] (pure monophthong)
Consonants -
/hw/ cluster preserved in wh- words: when = /hwen/ -
/r/ fully pronounced in all positions (rhotic) -
/kn/ and /gn/ clusters still pronounced: knight = /knəɪt/ -
Final /-ŋ/ often as /-ŋɡ/ or /-n/
The -tion Suffix -
Pronounced as two syllables: [tɪ.ʊn] or [sɪ.ʊn] -
“Nation” = /næː.tɪ.ʊn/ (three syllables) -
“Question” = /kwes.tɪ.ʊn/ (three syllables)
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1.1a When cometh the morrow?
1.1b When /hwen/ at-what-time cometh /ˈkʊ.məθ/ comes the /ðə/ the morrow /ˈmɔ.roː/ morning
1.2a When didst thou arrive?
1.2b When /hwen/ at-what-time didst /dɪdst/ did thou /ðaʊ/ you(sg.) arrive /ə.ˈrəɪv/ arrive
1.3a When shall we meet again?
1.3b When /hwen/ at-what-time shall /ʃal/ shall we /weː/ we meet /meːt/ meet again /ə.ˈɡeːn/ again
1.4a Tell me when ‘tis done.
1.4b Tell /tel/ tell me /meː/ me when /hwen/ when ‘tis /tɪz/ it-is done /dʊn/ done
1.5a When wilt thou return hither?
1.5b When /hwen/ at-what-time wilt /wɪlt/ will thou /ðaʊ/ you(sg.) return /rə.ˈtərn/ return hither /ˈhɪ.ðər/ here
1.6a I know not when he departed hence.
1.6b I /əɪ/ I know /noː/ know not /nɔt/ not when /hwen/ when he /heː/ he departed /de.ˈpar.tɪd/ departed hence /hens/ from-here
1.7a When fortune smiles, seize the occasion.
1.7b When /hwen/ when fortune /ˈfɔr.tɪ.ʊn/ fortune smiles /sməɪlz/ smiles seize /seːz/ seize the /ðə/ the occasion /ɔ.ˈkeː.zɪ.ʊn/ occasion
1.8a Marry, when was this letter writ?
1.8b Marry /ˈma.rɪ/ indeed when /hwen/ at-what-time was /wɔz/ was this /ðɪs/ this letter /ˈle.tər/ letter writ /rɪt/ written
1.9a The question stands: when shall justice prevail?
1.9b The /ðə/ the question /ˈkwes.tɪ.ʊn/ question stands /standz/ stands when /hwen/ when shall /ʃal/ shall justice /ˈdʒʊs.tɪs/ justice prevail /prə.ˈveːl/ prevail
1.10a We shall feast when the king arrives in state.
1.10b We /weː/ we shall /ʃal/ shall feast /feːst/ feast when /hwen/ when the /ðə/ the king /kɪŋɡ/ king arrives /ə.ˈrəɪvz/ arrives in /ɪn/ in state /stæːt/ state
1.11a Sirrah, when saw’st thou my lord of Gloucester?
1.11b Sirrah /ˈsɪ.rə/ fellow when /hwen/ when saw’st /sɔːst/ saw thou /ðaʊ/ you(sg.) my /məɪ/ my lord /lɔrd/ lord of /ɔv/ of Gloucester /ˈɡlɔs.tər/ Gloucester
1.12a When sorrows come, they come not single spies.
1.12b When /hwen/ when sorrows /ˈsɔ.roːz/ sorrows come /kʊm/ come they /ðeː/ they come /kʊm/ come not /nɔt/ not single /ˈsɪŋ.ɡl̩/ single spies /spəɪz/ spies
1.13a ‘Twas in that selfsame hour when all did change.
1.13b ‘Twas /twɔz/ it-was in /ɪn/ in that /ðat/ that selfsame /ˈself.seːm/ very-same hour /ʊːr/ hour when /hwen/ when all /ɔːl/ all did /dɪd/ did change /tʃæːndʒ/ change
1.14a Prithee tell, when didst thou first perceive his treachery?
1.14b Prithee /ˈprɪ.ðiː/ pray-thee tell /tel/ tell when /hwen/ when didst /dɪdst/ did thou /ðaʊ/ you(sg.) first /fərst/ first perceive /pər.ˈseːv/ perceive his /hɪz/ his treachery /ˈtre.tʃə.rɪ/ treachery
1.15a The nation trembles, uncertain when peace shall return.
1.15b The /ðə/ the nation /ˈnæː.tɪ.ʊn/ nation trembles /ˈtrem.bl̩z/ trembles uncertain /ʊn.ˈsər.tən/ uncertain when /hwen/ when peace /peːs/ peace shall /ʃal/ shall return /rə.ˈtərn/ return
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1.1 When cometh the morrow? At what time does the morning come?
1.2 When didst thou arrive? At what time did you arrive?
1.3 When shall we meet again? At what time shall we meet again?
1.4 Tell me when ‘tis done. Tell me when it is finished.
1.5 When wilt thou return hither? At what time will you return here?
1.6 I know not when he departed hence. I do not know when he left from here.
1.7 When fortune smiles, seize the occasion. At the time that fortune smiles, seize the opportunity.
1.8 Marry, when was this letter writ? Indeed, at what time was this letter written?
1.9 The question stands: when shall justice prevail? The question remains: at what time shall justice triumph?
1.10 We shall feast when the king arrives in state. We shall feast at the time that the king arrives ceremoniously.
1.11 Sirrah, when saw’st thou my lord of Gloucester? Fellow, at what time did you see my lord of Gloucester?
1.12 When sorrows come, they come not single spies. At the time that sorrows arrive, they arrive not as lone scouts.
1.13 ‘Twas in that selfsame hour when all did change. It was in that very same hour when everything changed.
1.14 Prithee tell, when didst thou first perceive his treachery? Pray tell, at what time did you first notice his betrayal?
1.15 The nation trembles, uncertain when peace shall return. The nation trembles, unsure at what time peace shall return.
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1.1 When cometh the morrow?
1.2 When didst thou arrive?
1.3 When shall we meet again?
1.4 Tell me when ‘tis done.
1.5 When wilt thou return hither?
1.6 I know not when he departed hence.
1.7 When fortune smiles, seize the occasion.
1.8 Marry, when was this letter writ?
1.9 The question stands: when shall justice prevail?
1.10 We shall feast when the king arrives in state.
1.11 Sirrah, when saw’st thou my lord of Gloucester?
1.12 When sorrows come, they come not single spies.
1.13 ‘Twas in that selfsame hour when all did change.
1.14 Prithee tell, when didst thou first perceive his treachery?
1.15 The nation trembles, uncertain when peace shall return.
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The Interrogative Function of WHEN
As an interrogative adverb, when opens questions concerning time. In Elizabethan English, such questions typically employed subject-verb inversion with auxiliary verbs or inverted word order with main verbs: -
When cometh he? (main verb inversion) -
When didst thou see him? (auxiliary do with inversion) -
When shall we depart? (modal auxiliary with inversion)
The second-person singular forms didst, wilt, shalt, and canst appeared with the pronoun thou, while did, will, shall, and can accompanied you (second-person plural or formal singular).
The Relative Function of WHEN
As a relative adverb, when introduces temporal clauses specifying the time of an action: -
I remember when he came. -
When fortune smiles, seize the day. -
The hour when all changed approaches.
These clauses may be restrictive (essential to meaning) or non-restrictive (additional information), though Elizabethan punctuation did not systematically distinguish between them as modern usage does.
Pronunciation: The /hw/ Cluster
The spelling wh- in Elizabethan English represented the phoneme cluster /hw/, a voiceless labiovelar approximant followed by a voiced one. This sound distinguished words like when, where, which, and whale from wen, wear, witch, and wail. The distinction survives in some modern dialects (Scottish English, Irish English, some American Southern and Midland dialects) but has merged with simple /w/ in most contemporary English.
The -tion Suffix: Syllabification
Words ending in -tion and -sion in Elizabethan pronunciation contained an additional syllable compared to modern speech. The suffix was pronounced approximately /tɪ.ʊn/ or /sɪ.ʊn/, making words like nation, question, and occasion trisyllabic: -
nation = /ˈnæː.tɪ.ʊn/ (three syllables) -
question = /ˈkwes.tɪ.ʊn/ (three syllables) -
occasion = /ɔ.ˈkeː.zɪ.ʊn/ (four syllables)
This syllabification affects the scansion of Elizabethan verse, and readers must account for it when reading Shakespeare’s iambic pentameter aloud.
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Time and the Elizabethan Worldview
The concept of time held particular fascination for Elizabethan thinkers and writers. Without standardized clocks, time remained fluid—measured by church bells, sundials, and the natural rhythms of day and night. The word when thus carried weight beyond mere temporal inquiry; it touched upon fortune, fate, and the providential ordering of events.
Shakespeare returns obsessively to questions of timing: when to act, when to speak, when to remain silent. Hamlet’s tragic flaw, some argue, lies in his inability to determine when the moment for action has arrived. The opening of Macbeth features the witches asking “When shall we three meet again?”—a question that establishes the play’s preoccupation with prophecy, timing, and the relationship between knowing the future and acting upon that knowledge.
The Great Vowel Shift
The Elizabethan period (1558–1603) fell squarely within the Great Vowel Shift, a series of changes to English long vowels occurring roughly between 1400 and 1700. During Shakespeare’s lifetime, the shift remained incomplete, creating a pronunciation system distinct from both Middle English and Modern English.
Long vowels were “raised” in the mouth—pronounced higher than before—while the highest vowels became diphthongs. Thus time, pronounced /tiːm/ in Chaucer’s era, became something like /təɪm/ in Shakespeare’s, with a schwa onset to the diphthong rather than the modern /aɪ/. This ongoing shift explains why certain Shakespearean rhymes and puns fail in modern pronunciation but succeed in reconstructed original pronunciation (OP).
The Standardization of English
The Elizabethan era witnessed increasing efforts to regularize English spelling and grammar, though complete standardization would not arrive until the eighteenth century. Printers developed house styles, dictionaries began to appear, and scholars debated the proper forms of English. Yet variation remained common: Shakespeare himself spelled his own name multiple ways, and texts from the period show considerable orthographic inconsistency.
The word when appears in various spellings across Elizabethan documents: when, whan, whenne, and others. The reconstruction of Elizabethan pronunciation depends upon analyzing these spelling variations, rhyme evidence, puns, and contemporary phonetic descriptions.
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From William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act III, Scene 1 (c. 1600)
To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep; No more; and by a sleep to say we end The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks That flesh is heir to, ‘tis a consummation Devoutly to be wish’d. To die, to sleep; To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause.
In this famous soliloquy, the word when introduces a temporal clause of profound uncertainty—the moment of death, when consciousness passes from waking life into whatever lies beyond. Note the three-syllable pronunciation of “question” /ˈkwes.tɪ.ʊn/ required for proper scansion of the opening line.
From William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act I, Scene 1 (c. 1606)
First Witch: When shall we three meet again In thunder, lightning, or in rain? Second Witch: When the hurlyburly’s done, When the battle’s lost and won.
The triple repetition of when establishes the witches’ preoccupation with timing and prophecy. The rhyme of “again” /ə.ˈɡeːn/ with “rain” /reːn/ works in Elizabethan pronunciation, where both contained the same long vowel sound—a rhyme that has since been obscured by subsequent vowel changes.
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The following dialogue demonstrates when in various contexts within a scene of Elizabethan dramatic prose and verse.
THE HOUR OF DECISION A scene in the manner of Shakespeare’s histories
Enter EDMUND, a young courtier, and MARGARET, his sister
EDMUND: Sister, I am troubled. When the council meets upon the morrow, I must declare my allegiance.
MARGARET: And when didst thou first learn of this convocation? /kɔn.vɔ.ˈkeː.tɪ.ʊn/
EDMUND: Three days hence, when my lord of Norfolk’s messenger arrived bearing letters sealed in crimson wax.
MARGARET: Marry, when matters grow so weighty, ‘tis wise to seek counsel ere one acts.
EDMUND: But from whom? Father lies dying; when last I saw him, he knew me not. Mother speaks only of prayer and preparation /pre.pə.ˈræː.tɪ.ʊn/ for his passing.
MARGARET: When sorrows multiply, the heart grows numb. Yet we must not be paralyzed, brother.
EDMUND: Tell me true—when came you first to suspect Lord Hastings of duplicity?
MARGARET: ‘Twas at the coronation /kɔ.rɔ.ˈnæː.tɪ.ʊn/, when I observed him in close conference with the Queen’s enemies. His face—’twas the face of one who calculates.
EDMUND: And when shall this calculation ripen into action /ˈak.tɪ.ʊn/?
MARGARET: Soon, brother. The nation /ˈnæː.tɪ.ʊn/ trembles when such men advance their ambitions.
EDMUND: Then I must choose. When the council convenes, I shall speak against him—come what may.
MARGARET: Bravely resolved. But prithee, when thou risest to speak, remember: the fox survives when the lion falls. Be bold, yet be cunning.
EDMUND: I shall. And when this business concludes—for good or ill—we shall flee to Flanders, there to await when fortune’s wheel turns once more in our favor.
MARGARET: So be it. When the hour strikes, we must be ready.
Exeunt
Notes on Period Pronunciation in the Dialogue
The dialogue above demonstrates several features of Elizabethan pronunciation:
The suffix -tion appears in multiple words, each pronounced with three syllables: “convocation” /kɔn.vɔ.ˈkeː.tɪ.ʊn/, “preparation” /pre.pə.ˈræː.tɪ.ʊn/, “coronation” /kɔ.rɔ.ˈnæː.tɪ.ʊn/, “action” /ˈak.tɪ.ʊn/, and “nation” /ˈnæː.tɪ.ʊn/.
The word when consistently retains its aspirated /hw/ onset throughout, distinguishing it from words beginning with simple /w/.
Long vowels in words like “choose” /tʃoːz/, “speak” /speːk/, and “flee” /fleː/ retain their pure monophthong quality, not yet raised to their modern values.
The second-person singular forms “didst” and “thou” appear throughout, reflecting the T-V distinction that Elizabethan English still maintained between intimate/informal address (thou/thee/thy) and formal/plural address (you/your).
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This lesson forms part of the Elizabethan English Course following the Latinum Institute methodology, designed for autodidact learners seeking to read and understand Early Modern English literature in something approaching its original linguistic context.
The course employs a frequency-based vocabulary curriculum of 1000 words, progressing from the most common grammatical words toward increasingly specialized vocabulary. Each lesson presents its topic word through construed interlinear text—a proven method for language acquisition that makes the structure and meaning of unfamiliar language immediately transparent.
Pronunciation Reconstruction
The IPA transcriptions in this course reflect reconstructed Elizabethan pronunciation based on the following sources: -
David Crystal, Pronouncing Shakespeare (Cambridge, 2005) -
E.J. Dobson, English Pronunciation 1500–1700 (Oxford, 1968) -
Fausto Cercignani, Shakespeare’s Works and Elizabethan Pronunciation (Oxford, 1981) -
Helge Kökeritz, Shakespeare’s Pronunciation (Yale, 1953)
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End of Lesson 43
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