JLPT N3: と～た・～たら～た (when... did)

By following「Vる ＋ と」or「Vたら 」with a phrase in the past tense (～た), we can describe that something occurred because of something else.

The action occurring before と or ～たら is the impetus for the action after と or ～たら.

Our translations of this type of sentence will often include the word "when."

An example:

お母さんがえさを撒くと、ハトが集まってきました。
おかあさん　が　えさ　を　まくと、　ハト　が　あつまって　きました。
When my mom scattered the food, pigeons gathered around.
Literally: “mother + が + food (for animals) + を + scatter + と, + pigeons + が + gathered around (=collect / gather [and] + came).”

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You'll have noticed that these sentences are following the same pattern as a couple of grammar points we've seen before.

The meanings of the sentences differ, but the constructions are pretty much the same:
- [NDL #743] - JLPT N4: と～た ([discovery])
- [NDL #744] - JLPT N3: と～た ([coincidence])

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Here's another example:

右のスイッチを押すと、音楽が流れ始めました。
みぎ　の　スイッチ　を　おすと、　おんがく　が　ながれはじめました。
When I flipped the switch on the right, music started playing.
Literally: “right + の + switch + を + press + と, + music + が + started playing.”

I was tempted to translate the above sentence as "When I pushed the switch..." but I thought that using the verb "push" with "switch," though closer to the Japanese, sounded a bit strange.

The thing is, they do often have light switches that you would "push" in Japan:

You'll also notice that these light switches are horizontal and not vertical, which is often the case.

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Like the other uses of と～た that we've seen, it is also possible to say ～たら～た, like so:

チョコをあげたら、その子は泣き止みました。
チョコ　を　あげたら、　その　こ　は　なきやみました。
When I gave the child chocolate, she stopped crying.
Literally: “chocolate + を + if/when (I) gave, + that + child + は + stopped crying.”

This has pretty much the same meaning as と～た, except ～たら～た sounds a bit more colloquial.

You'll come across both と～た and ～たら～た. If I had to guess, I'd say that I hear ～たら～た more often.

Here's another example with ～たら～た：

お腹いっぱい食べたら、眠くなりました。
おなか　いっぱい　たべたら、　ねむく　なりました。
After filling up on food, I got tired.
Literally: “stomach + full + if/when (I) ate, + sleepy + became.”

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And with that, you've now studied all of the と～た・～たら～た grammar points. Your name be praised, Oh Studious One.