Chinese word

好久

Pronunciation

Pinyinhǎo jiǔ

Meaning

  • adverba long time

Example

我们好久没去那家餐厅了。wǒ men háo jiǔ méi qù nà jiā cān tīng le

We haven't been to that restaurant in a long time.

Illustration for 好久 (a long time)

More examples

好久不见，真想你。háo jiǔ bú jiàn zhēn xiǎng nǐ

Long time no see; I really miss you.

Core concept

Marks one long stretch reaching from an earlier time to now, whether something continues or has stopped.

Common phrases

  • 好久不见háo jiǔ bú jiàn

    long time no see

  • 好久没去háo jiǔ méi qù

    not have gone in a long time

Similar words

很久hěn jiǔ: Over a lengthy period, with attention to the long duration.
一直yì zhí: All the time from an earlier point until now, without stopping.

Definition in Chinese

用来表示某个动作或状态与现在相比已经持续或间隔了很长时间。yòng lái biǎo shì mǒu gè dòng zuò huò zhuàng tài yǔ xiàn zài xiāng bǐ yǐ jīng chí xù huò jiàn gé le hěn cháng shí jiān

Word origin

好 (hǎo, "very") + 久 (jiǔ, "long-lasting") uses 好 as an intensifier to make the duration sound especially long.

Usage tips

  • A casual greeting can use this expression to mark a long gap since people last met, not just a period during which an action continues.

Other meanings

  • all this timeadverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word