à l'époque
/a l‿e.pɔk/
The English phrase "at the time" is translated into French as à l'époque.
à l'époque is used to refer to a specific time period, era or time frame in the past. Use this phrase when you are reminiscing about a general period, such as a previous decade or one's childhood.
Meaning: at the time referred to the specific time period, era, or time frame in the past (prep_phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the preposition à (at/to), the definite article l' (the) and the noun époque (era or period of time).
Which one should you use?
While à l'époque refers to a broad period or era in the past, à ce moment-là is used to refer to a specific, singular point in time (at that moment).
How do you pronounce it?
/a l‿e.pɔk/
Did you know?
- The word époque comes from the Greek epokhē, which originally referred to a 'stoppage' or 'suspension' of time to mark a beginning.
- The preposition à in à l'époque is a linguistic descendant of both the Latin words ad and ab, which meant 'to' and 'from' respectively.
- While époque means 'era' or 'period' in French, it is a direct relative of the English word 'epoch', though in French it is used much more casually in daily conversation.
Examples in context
- J'étais jeune, à l'époque.I was young at the time.This sentence is useful for showing how to describe a state of being during a certain period using à l'époque.Tatoeba #2173298 by sacredceltic, translation #2173111 by Hybrid
- Le savais-tu, à l'époque ?Did you know this at the time?This sentence is useful for asking if someone possessed certain knowledge during a certain period using à l'époque.Tatoeba #4110330 by sacredceltic, translation #3730554 by CM
- Tom était seul à l'époque.Tom was alone at the time.This sentence is useful for describing a person's condition during a certain period using à l'époque.Tatoeba #5553728 by guyniv, translation #5553341 by CK
- À l'époque, il était considéré comme le meilleur joueur de football du pays.At the time, he was considered the best football player in the country.
- Au moment de l'accident, nous étions en train de dîner.At the time of the accident, we were having dinner.
- À l'époque, on se promenait souvent dans ce quartier.At the time, we used to walk around this neighborhood often.
- 26 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nathan and Chloé are discussing how life was before smartphones.
- NathanOn n'avait pas de smartphones à l'époque.We didn't have smartphones at the time.
- ChloéC'est vrai, c'était très différent.That's true, it was very different.
- NathanOn utilisait des cartes en papier.We used paper maps.
- ChloéJe me rappelle, c'était compliqué !I remember, it was complicated!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “at the time” translations and entries à l'époque, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries à, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
