coeng4 si4長時长时
Jyutpingcoeng4 si4
Yalechèuhng sìh
Definition
For a long time; long-term.
colloquialtime
How it's used
While standard written Chinese often uses 長時間 to express duration, Cantonese speakers frequently shorten this to 長時 in casual speech. It functions as an adverbial phrase describing the duration of an action, often placed after the verb or the verb plus the aspect marker 咗.
Examples
Related words
Common mistake
Learners often confuse this with 好耐, which is the much more common and natural way to express a long duration in spoken Cantonese. Using 長時 can sound slightly more formal or emphatic depending on the speaker's regional accent.
Grammar color guide
Noun
Verb
Adjective
Adverb
Pronoun
Classifier
Particle
Connector
Grammar guides
- In 30 secondsThe whole language at a glance. No tenses, no plurals, six tones, sentence particles. Read this before you dive into any specific topic.
- ParticlesSentence particles add tone, emotion, and nuance. Learn the most common particles in Cantonese and how to use them.
- Possession (嘅)How to say my, your, and his, and how to link a describing word to a noun, all with the little word 嘅 (ge3).
