English → Latin
“while, whilst” in Latin
dum(with indicative) while, whilst, as, meanwhile (as), (for) as long as, until; (before a verbal substantive) during; (witdōnecwhile, as long as, until (denotes the relation of two actions at the same time)repēnssudden, unexpected; recent, fresh
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
while, whilst
conjunction, dum (during the time that; as; denoting that one event is contemporary with another; generally joined with the present indicative, even when events of the past time are spoken of, but we sometimes find the perfect: dum in the sense of quamdiu, “as long as, when referring to the past time, is regularly joined with the imperfect; Zumpt, § 506, 507; the answering clause often begins with subito, repente: to mark a sudden, unexpected event, integer jam, interea jam, in Liv., interim): donec (not used = “as long as” before Augustan poets and Liv.): cum (at the time when, denoting simultaneousness, with the perfect or imperfect indicative, the perfect being used in historical narratives, the imperfect in descriptions: the simultaneousness is marked more emphatically by adding interea or interim; Zumpt, § 580). As used to point out the coexistence of two states, etc., that should not coexist, cum interea, or cum only; e.g., bellum subito exarsit, cum Ligarius, domum spectans, nullo se negotio implicari passus est (“while Ligarius all the while,” etc.).
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for while, whilst?
- The usual Latin words for “while, whilst” are dum, dōnec, repēns. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.