How to Say ‘How long; how much’ in Japanese
どのぐらい
dono gurai
[doh-noh goo-rye]
💬 Usage Tip: Means “about how much/how long.” Similar to [どれくらい]. Great for time, distance, price.
🇯🇵 In Japan: When asking about travel, Japanese answers are commonly in minutes, not meters.
Phrase Breakdown
どの
dono
[doh-noh]
which; what (kind/one)
Used in questions to ask “how much/how long/how far.” Here it pairs with ぐらい to mean “about how (much/long).”
地下鉄の駅までどのぐらいですか。
About how far is it to the subway station?
ぐらい
gurai
[goo-rye]
about; approximately
Means “about/around” when estimating time, distance, or amount. Very common for directions: “５分ぐらい,” “１０分ぐらい.”
駅まで五分ぐらいです。
It’s about five minutes to the station.
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