何十年
nanjūnen
The English phrase "decades" can be translated into Japanese as 何十年 (nanjūnen).
何十年 is used to refer to a period consisting of several ten-year intervals.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of 何 (how many), 十 (ten) and 年 (years), literally meaning "how many ten-year periods".
Which one should you use?
While 何十年 is often used in questions or to express an indefinite large number, 数十年 is the standard way to state a specific but non-exact number of decades, such as "several decades".
How does it change in a sentence?
To emphasize a long duration, such as "for decades" or "for many decades," you can add the particle も to the end of the phrase to form 何十年も.
How do you pronounce it?
nanjūnen
Did you know?
- The character 年 is an ideograph that originally depicted a person growing grain, symbolizing the cycle of a harvest year.
- When writing 何十年 in a formal context, Japanese writers may use the kanji 幾 instead of 何 to express the same idea of 'several decades'.
- In Japanese, the word 何 usually asks 'what', but in 何十年, it functions as an intensifier to mean 'many' or 'countless', even when the speaker is not asking a question.
Examples in context
- 朝のメニューがかれこれ何十年と変わってない。The breakfast menu hasn't changed for decades.This sentence is useful for showing how to describe something that has remained unchanged for a long time using 何十年.Tatoeba #9650968 by Sim5634, translation #9667956 by CK
- 彼は何十年もこの街に住んでいる。Kare wa nanjuunen mo kono machi ni sunde iru.He has lived in this town for decades.
- 何十年もの間、この技術は使われていない。Nanjuunen mo no aida, kono gijutsu wa tsukawarete inai.This technology hasn't been used for decades.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a very old building in town.
- 陽葵 Himariあの古いビル、何十年もあそこにあるよね。Ano furui biru, nanjuunen mo asoko ni aru yo ne.That old building has been there for decades, hasn't it?
- 蓮 Renそうだね。陽葵、あれはとても歴史があるよ。Sou da ne. Himari, are wa totemo rekishi ga aru yo.That's true. Himari, that building has a lot of history.
- 陽葵 Himari蓮君、壊されるのがもったいないね。Ren-kun, kowasareru no ga mottainai ne.Ren, it would be a waste to tear it down.
- 蓮 Ren本当に。大切に残すべきだと思う。Hontou ni. Taisetsu ni nokusu beki da to omou.I agree. I think we should preserve it carefully.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
