How to say “a long time” in Chinese
a long time
“A long time” in Chinese is 好久, hǎo jiǔ: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
好久 is read hǎo jiǔ: 2 syllables. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
Two third tones in a row: the first one is said as a second tone, but it is still written as a third.
How to write it
女 “woman” and 子 “child” side by side: “good”.
It sounds the same as 九 “nine” and 酒 “alcohol”.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “好久”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 好久. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 我好久没看电影了wǒhǎojiǔméikàndiànyǐngleI haven't seen a movie in ages.
- 好久不见！hǎojiǔbújiànLong time no see!
- 我们好久没见面了wǒmenhǎojiǔméijiànmiànleLong time no see.
- 我们好久没联系了wǒmenhǎojiǔméiliánxìleWe haven't been in touch for ages.
- 王先生，好久不见！Wángxiānsheng,hǎojiǔbújiànMr. Wang, long time no see!
- 嘿老王好久不见hēi,lǎoWáng,hǎojiǔbújiànHey, Lao Wang, long time no see!
More words from the lesson “How long?”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “a long time” in Chinese?
“A long time” in Chinese is 好久, pinyin hǎojiǔ.
What does 好久 mean?
好久 (hǎojiǔ) means “a long time”.
How do you write 好久?
好久 is 2 characters: 好 (hǎo) — good, well; 久 (jiǔ) — long (time). The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 好久?
好久 is read hǎojiǔ. Tones: hǎo — third tone, jiǔ — third tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“a long time” in the lesson “How long?”
This word is from the topic “Seasons and time” of HSK 3. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
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