back then

IPA/bˈak ðˈɛn/
IPA/bˈæk ðˈɛn/

back then — 慣用語

1. during an earlier period that you have already mentioned, especially one that fe

1.慣用語B1
釋義

當時；那時

指之前提過、與現在不同的過去時期

during an earlier period that you have already mentioned, especially one that feels different from now.

例句

Gabriel grew up in a small village, and back then nobody had a phone.

Gabriel 在一個小村莊長大，當時沒有人有電話。

back then opening a clause about an earlier period

My grandmother started teaching in 1962; back then a bus ride cost a few cents.

我奶奶從 1962 年開始教書；那時搭一趟公車只要幾分錢。

back then referring to a named past year

同義詞
  • in those days

    very close in meaning; slightly more storytelling in tone

  • at that time

    more neutral and formal; works in writing where 'back then' feels too casual

  • in the past

    broader and vaguer; does not point to one specific earlier period the way 'back then' does

反義詞
  • nowadays

    marks the present period, the opposite of the earlier time 'back then' points to

  • these days

    informal counterpart used for the current period

文法句型

back then, + clause

clause + back then

用法筆記

Refers to a past time the speaker has already pointed to in the conversation, so it usually needs an earlier mention of that period to make sense. Often signals that things have changed since.

常見錯誤

❌Back then I will visit my aunt next week.
✅Back then I visited my aunt every week.
💡'back then' points to the past, so use a past tense, not a future one.
❌I was very shy back at that time.
✅I was very shy back then.
💡say 'back then' as a fixed phrase, not 'back at that time'.