'How Long' and 'How Much Time'
2020-12-05
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1Today, we answer a question from Jorge in Colombia. He writes:
2I'd like to know the difference between "how long" and "how much time." When should I use them?
3Thank you - from Jorge in Colombia
4Answer:
5Dear Jorge,
6Thank you for your question. Both "how long" and "how much time" are used to ask about the amount of time something takes or has taken.
7But there are differences between the two. Let us take a look at them.
8You will probably hear "how long" more than "how much time."
9It can sound less formal than "how much time" and many speakers find it more natural.
10It often comes at the beginning of a question.
11Here are a few examples:
12How long have you lived in Texas?
13How long will you be at the store?
14"How long" is often used with the present perfect verb tense.
15So, the questions you may want to ask will likely begin with "how long have you..."
16 English speakers do not use "How long" directly before the word "time."
17It is not correct to say "how long time."
18However, you may hear, "how long a time" in some situations, as in this example:
19How long a time will we have to wait for the test result?
20"How much time" is more exact than "how long".
21You will hear it at the beginning of a question.
22It is often used when asking about a shorter length of time.
23English speakers may think it sounds a bit awkward to say "how much time" when not asking for or giving directions.
24For example, you might use "how much time" to ask for the amount of time it takes to cook something.
25Or, you might use "how much time" to ask for the estimated length of time it takes to do a task.
26How much time does it take to cook rice?
27How much time will it take to clean the house?
28Thank you for the question, Jorge. I hope it did not take too much time for you to understand the answer!
29And that's Ask a Teacher.
30What question do you have about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com
31I'm Jill Robbins.
32And I'm Greg Stachel.
1Today, we answer a question from Jorge in Colombia. He writes: 2Question: 3I'd like to know the difference between "how long" and "how much time." When should I use them? 4Thank you - from Jorge in Colombia 5Answer: 6Dear Jorge, 7Thank you for your question. Both "how long" and "how much time" are used to ask about the amount of time something takes or has taken. But there are differences between the two. Let us take a look at them. 8How long 9You will probably hear "how long" more than "how much time." It can sound less formal than "how much time" and many speakers find it more natural. It often comes at the beginning of a question. Here are a few examples: 10How long have you lived in Texas? 11How long will you be at the store? 12"How long" is often used with the present perfect verb tense. So, the questions you may want to ask will likely begin with "how long have you..." English speakers do not use "How long" directly before the word "time." It is not correct to say "how long time." However, you may hear, "how long a time" in some situations, as in this example: 13How long a time will we have to wait for the test result? 14How much time 15"How much time" is more exact than "how long". You will hear it at the beginning of a question. It is often used when asking about a shorter length of time. 16English speakers may think it sounds a bit awkward to say "how much time" when not asking for or giving directions. For example, you might use "how much time" to ask for the amount of time it takes to cook something. Or, you might use "how much time" to ask for the estimated length of time it takes to do a task. 17How much time does it take to cook rice? 18How much time will it take to clean the house? 19Thank you for the question, Jorge. I hope it did not take too much time for you to understand the answer! 20And that's Ask a Teacher. 21What question do you have about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com 22I'm Jill Robbins. 23And I'm Greg Stachel. 24Gregory Stachel wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 25________________________________________________________________ 26Words in This Story 27formal - adj. suitable for serious or official speech and writing 28awkward - adj. not socially graceful or confident: uneasy or uncomfortable 29task - n. a piece of work that has been given to someone: a job for someone to do 30Do you have a question for the teacher? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com.