When you're (sorry to trouble you): 〜ところを
Plain form・noun + の + ところ（を）
Politeness: お忙しいところを／お休みのところを + apology or thanks, acknowledging the other person's situation. Otherwise, Verb + ところを + 見つかる・捕まる: “caught at the very moment when”. For an unexpected arrival, ところへ.
In short
〜ところを has two uses. 1) A politeness formula: you acknowledge the other person's situation (busy, resting, in bad weather) before apologising for disturbing them or thanking them (お忙しいところをすみません). 2) “at the very moment when”, with a verb of catching or interrupting: you catch someone in the middle of an action (逃げるところを捕まった). Formal register, letters, speeches.
- お忙しいところをお時間をいただき、ありがとうございます。おいそがしいところをおじかんをいただき、ありがとうございます。Thank you for sparing me some of your time when you're so busy.
- お休みのところを申し訳ありません。おやすみのところをもうしわけありません。I'm sorry to disturb you while you're resting.
- 犯人は逃げようとするところを警察に取り押さえられた。はんにんはにげようとするところをけいさつにとりおさえられた。The suspect was restrained by police just as he was trying to escape.
The basics
ところ refers to a situation, a moment. With を, the situation becomes something you “intrude on”. Hence the first use, a politeness formula: you acknowledge that the other person is busy, tired or resting, and that you're disturbing them all the same. It's used to apologise (すみません, 申し訳ありません) or to thank (ありがとうございます).
These formulas are indispensable in business emails, welcome speeches and polite conversation — much like English “Sorry to bother you when you're busy”.
Sorry to bother you when you're busy.
- adjective
- grammatical form
- verb
- お忙しいところをすみません。おいそがしいところをすみません。Sorry to bother you when you're busy.
- お足元の悪いところをお越しいただき、ありがとうございます。おあしもとのわるいところをおこしいただき、ありがとうございます。Thank you for coming despite the bad weather.
How to form it
い-adjective + ところを; noun + の + ところを; verb in the plain form + ところを. In politeness formulas, を is sometimes dropped (お忙しいところすみません). Here are the most common formulas.
| Formula | Situation acknowledged | Use |
|---|---|---|
| お忙しいところ（を） | you're busy | apologies, thanks |
| お休みのところ（を） | you're resting | calling on a day off |
| ご多忙のところ（を） | you're very busy (written) | letters, speeches |
| お足元の悪いところ（を） | the weather is bad | welcoming guests |
| Verb + ところを + 見る・捕まる… | at the very moment when | catching, arresting |
- ご多忙のところ恐縮ですが、ご確認をお願いいたします。ごたぼうのところきょうしゅくですが、ごかくにんをおねがいいたします。We're sorry to trouble you when you're so busy, but could you please check this?
- 危ないところを助けていただき、ありがとうございました。あぶないところをたすけていただき、ありがとうございました。Thank you for getting me out of such a tight spot.
The second meaning: caught in the act
With verbs like 見つかる, 見られる, 捕まる, 助ける, 呼び止める, ところを means “at the very moment when”: someone steps into the action in progress. The subject of the main verb acts on the person who was in the middle of doing something.
Don't confuse it with ところに / ところへ (N3): “just as…, something happens”. ところへ describes an unexpected arrival (電話がかかってきた, 友達が来た), ところを an intervention on the person.
| Expression | What happens | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 〜ところを + verb acting on the person | they're caught, stopped, saved | 逃げるところを捕まった |
| 〜ところへ／ところに | something happens at that moment | 出かけるところへ客が来た |
| 〜のに | although (reproach) | 忙しいのに来てくれた |
- 出かけようとしているところへ、客が来た。でかけようとしているところへ、きゃくがきた。Just as I was about to go out, a visitor arrived.
- カンニングしているところを先生に見つかった。かんにんぐしているところをせんせいにみつかった。The teacher caught him cheating.
Common mistakes
- Mixing up ところを and ところへ: “×電話がかかってきたところを” is wrong for an unexpected arrival; you say ところへ.
- Forgetting の after a noun: you say お休みのところを, not “×お休みところを”.
- Translating it literally as “at the place where”: here ところ refers to a situation or a moment, not a place.
7 exercises on this point
Particles to choose, sentences to put back in order, translations: marked straight away, then reviewed at the right time. This JLPT N1 point is on the Kyūshū Line (Values and society) of the Shinkansen.