A common mistake that many German speakers make is correctly using the words "during", "whilst" and "while", and might create a sentence such as;
The correct sentence should be "Whilst I was writing the Email, I made a mistake". Let's look at why;
Remember, the German word während translates to both "during", "whilst" and "while".
During is always followed by a noun, or noun phrase, ie. "during the summer", "during the war", "during the last quarter".
Whilst/while (they mean the same thing) are always followed by a full sentence, often in a continuous tense; "whilst I was working,...", "while I'm waiting for you,...", or "whilst they were working on the final draft of the script,..."
Excercise: fill in the gaps with "during", "whilst" and "while".
___________ the meeting last week we discussed staff motivation.
___________ I was sat in the meeting, I was so bored I decided to quit my job.
___________ my commute to work I listen to the radio.
I always listen to a podcast ___________ I'm travelling to work.
The decision to move forwards with the project was made ___________ the first 5 minutes of the meeting.
___________ you are there, could you tell him I'll email him later.
The whole room was silent ___________ the presentation.
I did feel relaxed after my holiday, but not anymore - it was fun ___________ it lasted.
Answers:
During the meeting last week we discussed staff motivation.
Whilst I was sat in the meeting, I was so bored I decided to quit my job.
During my commute to work I listen to the radio.
I always listen to a podcast while I'm travelling to work.
The decision to move forwards with the project was made during the first 5 minutes of the meeting.
While you are there, could you tell him I'll email him later.
The whole room was silent during the presentation.
I did feel relaxed after my holiday, but not anymore - it was fun while it lasted.