How to Say ‘Have you been waiting long?’ in Traditional Chinese
你等很久了嗎？
nǐ děng hěn jiǔ le ma
[nee dung hun jee-oh luh ma]
💬 Usage Tip: Put a verb before [很久] to say how long someone has been doing it: [等很久] = "waited a long time." Ending with [了嗎] asks whether that situation is true now: [你等很久了嗎？] = "Have you been waiting long?"},{
Phrase Breakdown
你
nǐ
[nee]
you
The person being asked if they have been waiting.
你等很久了嗎？真的抱歉。
Have you been waiting long? I’m really sorry.
等
děng
[dung]
wait
Means “to wait.” In this sentence, it asks whether someone has been waiting.
你等很久了嗎？我路上塞車。
Have you been waiting long? There was traffic on my way here.
很久
hěn jiǔ
a long time
很久 describes a long duration.
我等很久了。
I’ve waited for a long time.
Words in this phrase
很
hěn
[hun]
very
Used before adjectives or time expressions to mean “very.”
你等很久了嗎？我怕你不高興。
Have you been waiting a long time? I’m worried you’re unhappy.
久
jiǔ
[jee-oh]
long time
Refers to a long duration of time.
你等很久了嗎？其實我剛到。
Have you been waiting a long time? Actually, I just arrived.
了嗎
le ma
already...?; have ...?
了 can mark a completed state, and 嗎 turns the sentence into a yes-no question.
你吃了嗎？
Have you eaten?
Words in this phrase
了
le
[luh]
aspect particle
Shows a state that has continued up to now in this question.
你等很久了嗎？我現在到了。
Have you been waiting long? I’ve arrived now.
嗎
ma
[ma]
question particle
Turns the sentence into a yes-no question.
你等很久了嗎？如果有，我很抱歉。
Have you been waiting a long time? If so, I’m very sorry.
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