How to Say ‘About how long will it take?’ in Japanese
どのくらいかかりますか。
dono kurai kakari masu ka
[doh-noh koo-RAI kah-kah-REE mahs kah]
💬 Usage Tip: かかります means "to take" when talking about time or money. Ask いくらかかりますか "how much does it cost?"
Phrase Breakdown
どのくらい
dono kurai
how long / how much
どのくらい (dono kurai) asks about amount, time, or degree. Say it smoothly: do-no-ku-ra-i.
どのくらい日本にいますか。
How long have you been in Japan?
Words in this phrase
どの
dono
[doh-noh]
which
Used before a noun to ask which one among several choices.
どの席がいいですか。
Which seat is good?
くらい
kurai
[koo-RAI]
about; extent
Indicates approximate amount; with どの it asks 'how much/how long'.
駅までどのくらいかかりますか。
How long does it take to the station?
かかりますか。
kakari masu ka
does it take?
かかります (kakarimasu) means 'to take' time or money. か makes it a question.
駅まで十分かかりますか。
Does it take ten minutes to the station?
Words in this phrase
かかり
kakari
[kah-kah-REE]
to take (time)
Stem of かかる; used for how much time something requires.
駅まで十分かかります。
It takes ten minutes to the station.
ます
masu
[mahs]
polite verb ending
A standard polite ending added to verbs, often used in customer service and formal speech.
予約を確認し ます。
I will confirm the reservation.
か
ka
[kah]
question marker
Placed at the end of a sentence to make it a question.
A席はありますか。
Are there A seats available?
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