No. 596 in Italian
frattempo
"Frattempo" means "meanwhile" or "in the meantime" in English.
In a sentence
Ho iniziato a cucinare, e nel frattempo il mio amico ha apparecchiato la tavola.
I started cooking, and in the meantime, my friend set the table.
'Frattempo' in this sentence is used to indicate simultaneous actions occurring in the duration of the same time period.
Studia per l'esame; nel frattempo prendi qualche pausa per rilassarti.
Study for the exam; in the meantime, take some breaks to relax.
Here, 'frattempo' implies inserting another action during a primary ongoing activity and underscores the importance of balance.
Il film non è ancora iniziato; nel frattempo possiamo prendere del popcorn.
The movie hasn’t started yet; in the meantime, we can get popcorn.
In this example, 'frattempo' situates a secondary action in the gap of waiting for the main event, filling the idle time productively.
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