～ところを — Caught In The Act
Marks an ongoing situation as the object of an action that catches, interrupts, or acts upon it. Often 'just as (someone was doing X), (someone) caught/stopped them'. In set polite phrases it also means 'despite (your busy) situation', apologizing for imposing.
Structure
[Verb (plain) / い-adj / な-adj な / Noの] + ところを
Examples
授業中に居眠りしているところを先生に見られた。
Jugyou-chuu ni inemuri shite iru tokoro o sensei ni mirareta.
I was caught by the teacher dozing off during class.
ところを makes the dozing situation the object of 見られた (was seen).
泥棒は逃げるところを警察に捕まった。
Dorobou wa nigeru tokoro o keisatsu ni tsukamatta.
The thief was caught by police just as he was fleeing.
ところを marks the fleeing moment that was interrupted by the arrest.
お忙しいところをすみません。
Oisogashii tokoro o sumimasen.
Sorry to bother you when you're busy.
ところを is a set expression apologizing for imposing on someone's situation.
• The main verb is usually one of seeing, catching, stopping, or helping (見る, 捕まえる, 止める, 助ける). • The set phrase お忙しいところを / お休みのところを is polite and very common. • Register: neutral to polite; the apology form is quite formal.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones ～ところを is tested against.
vs ～ところに／へ
ところに／へ marks the moment an event arrives (subject enters), while ところを marks the situation acted upon (object caught/interrupted).
vs ～のに
のに means 'even though (contrary)', whereas ところを specifically frames an ongoing scene as the target of an action or imposition.
More time expressions
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