Chinese phrase
我已经等了〜分钟 wǒ yǐ jīng děng le 〜 fēn zhōng
Meaning
I have already been waiting for ___ minutes
When to use it
Shows the speaker has waited for a set number of minutes. It is common in casual conversation when reporting a wait, often with a gentle request for action.
Example dialogue
我已经等了 五 分钟了，能不能快一点？ wǒ yǐ jīng děng le wǔ fēn zhōng le néng bù néng kuài yì diǎn
I have already been waiting for five minutes. Could you hurry up a little?
好的，我十秒钟就到，请等一下。 hǎo de wǒ shí miǎo zhōng jiù dào qíng děng yí xià
Okay, I will be there in ten seconds. Please wait a moment.