Confusing words: during, for, while
Confusing during, for and while is a common learner error. Let’s look at the difference and then do a quick exercise.
During
During is a preposition. We use it to talk about a period of time.
During is followed by a noun:
during the night
during our holiday
during their marriage
during the concert.
Some examples:
- I woke up three times during the night.
- There was a massive thunderstorm during the concert. NOT
while the concert - I met a lot of interesting people during my time in New York.
For
We use for to say how long something happened, has been happening, or will be happening.
For is a preposition.
- He was at work for ten hours yesterday. NOT
during yesterday - I’ve lived here for five years. NOT
during five years - I’m going to watch TV for an hour. NOT
during an hour
While
While is a conjunction and means ‘when’ or ‘at the same time’. We use while with a verb structure:
while I was living
while I lived
while living NOT during living
while I was.
Some examples:
- The doorbell rang while we were having dinner. NOT
during we were having dinner - You shouldn’t use a mobile phone while driving a car. NOT
during driving a car - I met a lot of interesting people while I was in New York.
Here’s a quick exercise for you to test yourself on during, for and while.
See more: Confusing Words
Ankit shah - March 31, 2012, 7:53 am
It is very helpful exercise. Thank you very much. Please give such explanation for some other words in future. Thanks again.
Stuart Cook - March 31, 2012, 2:03 pm
Glad you found it helpful, Ankit. Yes, there will be more explanations of ‘confusing words’ in future posts.
khalid - June 1, 2012, 5:27 am
Thank you, it was really useful for me
youssef - August 21, 2013, 1:44 pm
thank you so much i appreciate your course it is interesting
min jung park - March 3, 2015, 7:39 am
i’m confusing between during and for.
is it ok i know that for is used to express specific time like for two days, for decades, for three years ?
and during is used more general time than for.
thank you for your sincerity and answer in advance.
Stuart Cook - March 3, 2015, 4:36 pm
Hello, Min
Use during with nouns such as holidays and week. It means ‘at some time between the beginning and end’: during the holidays, during summer, etc.
For, as you correctly said, is used with time periods and lengths of time; it tells us how long: for two days, for a long time, for four years, etc.