N2 — outside your level filter
た途端に
たとたんにta totan niN2neutral
▸Related patterns7
Similar
- とき
とき just places two events together, with no claim on closeness (座ったとき is neutral). とたんに needs the second event almost at once, and reads as a jolt (座ったとたんに椅子が壊れた).
- か〜ないかのうちに
たとたんに needs the first thing fully done before the next starts (着いたとたんに). か〜ないかのうちに blurs that line, so the first might not be finished yet.
- かと思うと
とたんに just says the second thing follows the first, surprising or not (着いたとたんに). かと思うと needs a sudden switch, usually the opposite (泣いているかと思うと、もう笑っている).
- 次第
たとたんに reports what happened right after, often a surprise (ドアが開いたとたん、猫が逃げた). What follows 次第 must be a non-past planned act, never a surprise (分かり次第ご連絡します).
- 末に
とたんに needs the first event instant, with the second right behind (×長時間考えたとたんに fails). 末に needs the first to take a long time.
- すぐ
たとたん pins the second event to the instant the first finished. すぐ is a bare word needing nothing before it, so only たとたん carries surprise.
- と同時に
とたんに needs the second event uncontrolled and surprising. と同時に just claims the two coincide, and takes a scheduled second event happily (卒業すると同時に就職した).
▸Same meaning4
the moment X happens; as soon as
▸All examples3
この財布、開けたとたんに小銭が全部落ちるんだよね。
kono saifu, aketa totan ni kozeni ga zenbu ochiru n da yo ne.
This wallet — the moment you open it, all the change falls out, you know. casual
電気を消したとたんに、電話が鳴った。
denki o keshita totan ni, denwa ga natta.
The moment I turned off the light, the phone rang. neutral
開演の合図が鳴ったとたん、会場は静まり返りました。
kaien no aizu ga natta totan, kaijou wa shizumarikaerimashita.
The moment the curtain-up signal sounded, the venue fell completely silent. formal
▸How it's formed1
▸All forms2
たとたんtatotancontraction
味わった+とたん
に drops freely in speech and casual writing, with no change of tone — ドアが開いたとたん、猫が逃げた.
そのとたんsonototanalternant
takes the previous sentence as the first event, already closed off before it — ドアを開けた。そのとたん、猫が飛び出してきた。
▸Notes
とたんに wants the second event to be uncontrolled or unexpected — a
deliberate, planned main part after it (起きたとたんに歯を磨いた)
sounds odd.