Definition
历时 (lì shí) is a formal verb meaning 'to last, to take (a period of time)', often used with a specific duration (e.g., 历时三年). It differs from 持续 (chí xù) 'to continue', which emphasizes ongoingness without a set endpoint, and from 耗时 (hào shí) 'to consume time', which is more colloquial. As an adjective, it means 'diachronic' in linguistics.
verb
to lastto take (a period of time)
adjective
diachronicrelating to historical development (especially in linguistics)
Easily confused
- 历史lì shǐsound-alikehistory
- 理事lǐ shìsound-alike(noun) council member, director (of an organization)
Examples
- 历时。Zhè xiàng gōngchéng lì shí sān nián cái wánchéng.This project took three years to complete.
- 历时。Bǐsài lì shí le zhěngzhěng wǔ gè xiǎoshí.The competition lasted a full five hours.
- 历时。lì shí yǔyánxué shì yánjiū yǔyán yǎnbiàn de xuékē.Diachronic linguistics is the study of language change.
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