cuándo
when
Asks at what time something happens
Encoding Strategies:
repetition
Cuándo means when and is an adverb asking "at what time?" The accent mark signals stress and emphasis, which is why it naturally appears in questions and exclamations — think "WHEN?!"
cuándo
when (interrogative)
Used to ask or wonder about the time something happens.
- ¿Cuándo vas a llegar? = When are you going to arrive? (When are you going to arrive?)
- No sé cuándo vas a llegar = I don't know when you're going to arrive (“When are you going to arrive?” is what I don't know)
when (exclamatory)
Used as an exclamation to express longing or exasperation about when something will happen.
- ¡Cuándo acabará todo esto! = When will all this ever end! (WHEN will this ever end!)
el cuándo
the when
Adding el turns the question at what time? into a thing in itself: the time at which something happens.
- Nos vamos a casar, pero el cuándo y el dónde aún no lo sé = We're getting married, but I don't know the when or the where yet