כאשר

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Hebrew

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Etymology

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From כְּ־ (k'-, like, as) +‎ אֲשֶׁר (ashér, that, which); compare כְּשֶׁ־ (k'she-).

Conjunction

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כַּאֲשֶׁר (ka'ashér)

  1. When, as, at the time that.
  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see כ־,‎ אשר.
    • Tanach, Exodus 1:17, with translation of the King James Version:
      וְלֹא עָשׂוּ כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר אֲלֵיהֶן מֶלֶךְ מִצְרָיִם
      and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them

Usage notes

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  • In modern use, this term is comparatively formal, the shorter synonym כְּשֶׁ־ (k'she-) being comparatively informal.
  • Unlike English when, כַּאֲשֶׁר is not used in framing questions, nor in introducing interrogative content clauses; the interrogative adverb and conjunction מָתַי (matái, when) is used for these purposes.
  • Whereas in English, when and that are somewhat interchangeable in introducing complement clauses for temporal nouns — “the time when” and “the time that” being synonymous — in Hebrew כַּאֲשֶׁר cannot be used this way; rather, אֲשֶׁר (ashér, that, which) or (more frequently) שֶׁ־ (she-, that, which) is required.