たびに (tabi ni)
~たびに — “every time ~”
Pattern
-
動詞辞書形 + たびにdictionary form + たびに (見るたびに) -
名詞 + の + たびにnoun + の + たびに (旅行のたびに)
Meaning and connection
たび means “occasion, time.” 見るたびに is “each time I see (it).” Attach it to the dictionary form of a verb, or to a noun with の: 春が来るたびに, 旅行のたびに.
What follows
The second part is usually something that arises on its own: a feeling (思い出す, 懐かしくなる), a wish, or a change. It is natural for these things to happen automatically each time.
Difference from ~と / いつも
~たびに stresses that the same thing repeats at each occasion. It is slightly formal and often used in writing. In casual talk, 見ると、いつも... is also common.
Examples
-
この写真(しゃしん)を見(み)るたびに、母(はは)を思(おも)い出(だ)す。
Kono shashin o miru tabi ni, haha o omoidasu.
Every time I see this photo, I remember my mother.
-
春(はる)が来(く)るたびに、故郷(こきょう)の桜(さくら)を思(おも)い出(だ)す。
Haru ga kuru tabi ni, kokyō no sakura o omoidasu.
Every time spring comes, I remember the cherry blossoms of my hometown.
-
この曲(きょく)を聞(き)くたびに、学生時代(がくせいじだい)に戻(もど)りたくなる。
Kono kyoku o kiku tabi ni, gakusei jidai ni modoritaku naru.
Every time I hear this song, I want to go back to my school days.
Common mistakes
- With a noun, you need の: 旅行のたびに, not 旅行たびに.
- Do not use it for a one-time event. It needs a situation that repeats.
More grammar points
- ぶりに ~ぶりに — for the first time in ~ (a period)
- 中(ちゅう) ~中 (ちゅう/じゅう) — during ~, within ~
- ふと ふと — suddenly, on an impulse
- ごとに ~ごとに — every ~, at each ~
- 一度(いちど)に 一度に — all at once
- から〜にかけて ~から~にかけて — from ~ through ~
- にかけて ~から~にかけて — spanning from ~ to ~
- につれて ~につれて — as ~ progresses, ~ changes
- 際(さい)に ~際に — at the time of ~ / when ~
- 最中(さいちゅう)に ~最中に — right in the middle of ~
- しばらく しばらく — for a while
- すでに すでに — already
- たとたん ~たとたん — “the moment ~”
- てはじめて ~てはじめて — “only after ~ing”
- てからでないと ~てからでないと — “not unless ~ first”
- 途中(とちゅう)で/途中(とちゅう)に 途中で/途中に — “on the way / partway through”
- ついに ついに — “finally / in the end”
- うちに ~うちに — “while ~ / before it changes”
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