at the time
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at the time
At a particular time in the past; back then. Often used to refer to an earlier era or an earlier period of life.
Mein Großvater war seinerzeit ein sehr bekannter Architekt in dieser Stadt.
My grandfather was a very well-known architect in this city at the time.
'Seinerzeit' (at the time) is composed of the old forms 'seiner' (genitive of 'sein') and 'Zeit' (time). Literally, it means 'in his time' or 'at that time'.
Seinerzeit gab es in diesem Dorf nur eine einzige Straße.
At the time, there was only a single road in this village.
As an adverb, 'seinerzeit' (at the time) can stand in position 1; then the verb follows in position 2. But it can also stand after the verb in the middle of the sentence.
Seinerzeit war das Reisen viel komplizierter.
At the time, traveling was much more complicated.
This word belongs to an elevated or written style. It often sounds somewhat nostalgic or historical.
Die Gebäude, die seinerzeit als modern galten, stehen heute unter Denkmalschutz.
The buildings that were considered modern at the time are now protected as historic monuments.
back then
„Damals“ and „seinerzeit“ both refer to a time in the past. In everyday speech, „damals“ is usually directly tied to a specific conversational context, while „seinerzeit“ often sounds more formal or reflective when referring to an earlier phase of life or an era. Use „damals“ in normal conversation and „seinerzeit“ for an emphasized look back.
In seinen Erinnerungen schrieb er: Seinerzeit wohnte er noch in Köln.
In his memoirs, he wrote, "At the time, he was still living in Cologne."
Als wir über den Umzug sprachen, sagte ich: Damals wohnte ich noch in Köln.
When we discussed the move, I said, "Back then, I was still living in Cologne."
