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Pb03 Posted 18 years ago
Vocabulary

in a while / for a while ?

0Hello everyone,02br
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00I need to figure out the exact meaning of the phrase 'in a while.'02br
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00As I know, that phrase means the same as 'sometimes.'02br
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00In the following dialogue, however, it seems that the phrase has different meaning, which looks somewhat strange to me.02br
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00Would you take a look and let me know whether it is correct or not?02br
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00('For a while' seems to be more proper phrase for that to me...)02br
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00Thanks~02br
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00pb02br
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00-----------02br
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00Here is the dialgues:02br
0100StartFragment00>02br
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001. 02br
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00M: I’m so excited to be going to the movies. It’s been a long time since I’ve actually visited the theater and enjoyed a film.02br
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00W: It’s the same for me. Well, let’s take a look at what films are playing.02br
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00M: I haven’t seen a good action movie 01b01u00in a while.02u02b00 I hope that 00Spider-Man 300 is playing here.02br
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00W: Well, I’ve got good news and bad news. The good news is that the movie’s playing here, but the bad news is that it’s already over. I’m sorry about that.02br
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002.02br
0100StartFragment00>02br
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00W: I00’00m so excited to be going on a trip this weekend. I00’00m going to love spending time with my friends.02br
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00M: You00’00re driving to the beach this weekend, right?02br
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00W: Yeah, I haven00’00t been there 01b01u00in a while02u02b00, so I00’00m going to have fun.0-
  

Top answer

0It's been a [considerable] while since I've 01u 00seen one / been there02u 00 I haven't 01u 00seen one / been there02u 00 01b 01u 00in ages. 02u 02b 02br 02br 00It's correct. In this context, it means a [long] while has passed since the last time a thing happened.

— Avangi

  • 0It's been a [considerable] while since I've 01u 00seen one / been there02u 00 I haven't 01u 00seen one / been there02u 00 01b 01u 00in ages.
  • 02u 02b 02br 02br 00It's correct.
  • In this context, it means a [long] while has passed since the last time a thing happened.
  • " You can see that the the two are not always interchangeable.
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3 Answers
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0It's been a [considerable] while since I've 01u00seen one / been there02u00 I haven't 01u00seen one / been there02u00 01b01u00in ages. / in a long time.02u02b02br
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00It's correct. In this context, it means a [long] while has passed since the last time a thing happened. "For a w
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1u00Once02u00 in a while = sometimes, occasionally02br
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00in a while = something will happen soon in the future.02br
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00for a while = a short period of time (I'm just going to sit here for a while). Here it's been made a negative (I haven't been to the cinema for a while = I haven't been to the cinema recently). It's not a preci
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1i00a while02i00 is an 01u00indefinite02u00 period of time. It is usually equivalent to 01i00some time02i00. It can be short or long; it is relative to the context in which it occurs. 02br
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00For example, the amount of time represented by 01i00while02i00 in 01i00I'll be i
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