Learn Hardcore Chinese: wàimiàn xiàyǔ de shíhou, wǒ xǐhuan zhàn zài chuānghu pángbiān tīng yīnyuè. - When it’s raining outside, I like to stand by the window and listen to music.

下雨的时候
- Very common in spoken Chinese
- Sounds neutral and natural in everyday speech
下雨时
- Shorter and a bit more formal or written
- You’ll see it more in articles, essays, or headlines

In conversation, 下雨的时候 is safer and more natural-sounding.

What exactly does 的时候 do in this sentence?

的时候 marks a time clause: it tells you when something happens.

Structure:

[time clause] + 的时候，+ [main clause]

In this sentence:

外面下雨的时候， → when it is raining outside
我喜欢站在窗户旁边听音乐。 → I like to stand by the window and listen to music.

You can replace the part before 的时候 with many other time expressions:

我累的时候，我喝咖啡。 – When I’m tired, I drink coffee.
你来的时候，给我打电话。 – When you come, call me.

Why is 外面 at the very beginning? Does it mean I’m outside, or that it’s raining outside?

Here, 外面 describes where the rain is, not where I am.

外面下雨 = It’s raining outside.

Word-by-word:

外面 – outside
下雨 – to rain

So 外面下雨的时候 = when it’s raining outside.

You are actually inside (by the window), which is clear from 站在窗户旁边.

You could also say:

外面下着雨的时候，我喜欢…… – When it’s (currently) raining outside, I like…

Putting 外面 at the front is normal topic–comment style:
外面下雨的时候 (topic / time) ，我喜欢…… (what I do then).

Could I say 在外面下雨的时候? Is that different from 外面下雨的时候?

You can say 在外面下雨的时候, but it slightly changes the feeling:

外面下雨的时候
- Very natural and common
- Simply states the situation: when it’s raining outside
在外面下雨的时候
- Grammatically OK, but sounds more like
  “during the time when it is raining outside”
- Slightly heavier and more “written” in feel

In everyday speech, people would normally just say 外面下雨的时候. Adding 在 is not wrong, but usually unnecessary.

Why is there no subject like 天 or 它 in 下雨? Who is doing the raining?

In Chinese, weather verbs usually don’t need a subject:

下雨 – to rain
下雪 – to snow
刮风 – to be windy
打雷 – to thunder

You normally just say:

今天下雨。 – It’s raining today.
昨天刮风。 – It was windy yesterday.

There’s no “it” like English “it rains”. The verb itself is enough. So 外面下雨的时候 is perfectly complete without any subject inside the time clause.

Does this sentence mean “when it is raining right now” or “whenever it rains (in general)”? How is tense expressed?

Chinese doesn’t mark tense the way English does (-ed, will, etc.). Here, the sentence describes a general habit:

外面下雨的时候，我喜欢站在窗户旁边听音乐。
→ When it rains outside, I like to stand by the window and listen to music (as a habit).

The habitual meaning comes from:

The verb 喜欢 (to like) often implies a general preference
No specific time words like 现在, 昨天, 明天

If you wanted to emphasize “right now,” you’d normally add something like:

现在外面下雨，我喜欢站在窗户旁边听音乐。
(Right now it’s raining outside, I like to stand by the window and listen to music.)

But as given, it’s more like a general statement about what you enjoy doing whenever that situation occurs.

Why is it 喜欢站在窗户旁边听音乐 without “to” or “doing”? How does 喜欢 + verb work?

In Chinese, 喜欢 can be followed directly by:

a noun: 喜欢音乐 – like music
a verb / verb phrase: 喜欢听音乐 – like listening to music

So:

我喜欢站在窗户旁边听音乐。
Literally: I like stand by the window listen to music.
Natural English: I like to stand by the window and listen to music.

There is no extra word equivalent to English “to” or “-ing”. 喜欢 + [verb phrase] already means “like doing [verb phrase]” or “like to do [verb phrase]”.

Examples:

我喜欢跑步。 – I like running / I like to run.
她喜欢看书。 – She likes reading / likes to read.

Why is it 站在窗户旁边, not just 站窗户旁边?

站在 + place is the standard way to say “stand at / in / on + place”:

站在门口 – stand at the door
站在桥上 – stand on the bridge
站在教室里 – stand in the classroom

The verb 在 here marks location. Without 在, 站窗户旁边 sounds incomplete or unnatural.

So the pattern is:

[person] + 站在 + [location]

You can also say:

我在窗户旁边站着。 – I am standing by the window.

That uses 在 + place + 站着, which is another common pattern: 在 + place + verb.

Why is it 窗户旁边 and not 窗户的旁边? Is something omitted?

Both are possible:

窗户旁边
窗户的旁边

Meaning is basically the same: next to / beside the window.

的 is often omitted between a noun and a location word when the relationship is very clear and fixed, especially in spoken Chinese:

Common examples:

桌子上(面) / 桌子的上(面) – on the table
床下(面) / 床的下(面) – under the bed
门口 / 门的口 (though 门口 is the standard fixed form)

So 窗户旁边 is slightly more natural and concise in speech; 窗户的旁边 is also correct but just a bit heavier.

What is the difference between 窗户 and 窗口? Could I say 站在窗口旁边?

窗户 – the usual everyday word for window (the actual window in your room, house, etc.).
窗口 – literally “window opening”; by extension it is also used for:
- physical windows,
- service counters: 售票窗口 (ticket window), 服务窗口 (service counter),
- figurative “window”: 对外开放的窗口 (a window to the outside world).

In a normal home situation, 窗户 is the most natural.
You can say 站在窗口旁边, and people will understand, but 窗户 is more typical for a regular house/apartment window.

Could I change the word order and say 我喜欢在窗户旁边站着听音乐? Is that better because of 站着?

Yes, that is also correct, and it slightly changes the focus.

Original:

我喜欢站在窗户旁边听音乐。
– I like to stand by the window and listen to music.

Alternative:

我喜欢在窗户旁边站着听音乐。
– I like to be standing by the window and listen to music.

Differences:

Position of 在
- 站在窗户旁边 = stand-at window-side (verb + 在 + place)
- 在窗户旁边站着 = be-at window-side standing (在 + place + verb)
Both patterns are common and grammatical.
Use of 着
- 站着 emphasizes a continuous state of standing (you are in the state of standing).
- Without 着, it can be more neutral, often fine as a habitual description.

Both sentences are natural. The original is already perfectly good; adding 在…站着 just underscores that the standing is a continuous posture while you listen.

Should I add 着 to 听音乐, like 听着音乐?

You can say:

我喜欢站在窗户旁边听着音乐。

This slightly emphasizes the ongoing background nature of the music. Rough nuance:

听音乐 – listen to music (neutral)
听着音乐 – (in a situation where) music is playing and you’re listening

However, in everyday speech, 听音乐 is totally natural and common. Adding 着 is optional and more about subtle aspect/feeling than correctness:

Habit / preference: 我喜欢听音乐。
Background action in some contexts: 我喜欢一边看书，一边听着音乐。

How is 时候 (shíhou) pronounced? Why is it not shíhòu with two full tones?

The standard pronunciation is:

时 – shí, second tone
候 – hou, neutral tone (light, unstressed)

So: shíhou (not shíhòu).

In many common two-syllable words, the second syllable becomes neutral tone, especially when it’s a very frequent grammatical word or suffix-like element. 时候 is one of those:

时候 – shíhou (time, when)
妈妈 – māma
哥哥 – gēge
地方 – dìfang

So you should keep shí as 2nd tone and let hou be very light and short.