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Describe a span of time of 1 or 2 years, without being too literal

になっている vs がある ？Employed by one institution but work for anotherWhy does 今度【こんど】 mean “next time”?Is there a term for words that share the same kana spelling?Translation help with a sentence, use of たる?Politeness and Usage of ぶっちゃけPurpose of “のだ” in “数年も漁村に住んでて、いろんな魚種類を食べてるのだ”?The meaning of 吐く in a scene from 火花How would you say “I changed my mind” in Japanese?What does よし！久しぶりに魚にしようっと！ mean?How would I know whether a word existed and was commonly used N years ago?

3

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

words

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Did you consider 以前?
  
  – Ringil
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  以前 is a great word for this situation!
  
  – ajsmart
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Ringil A quick answer with this word in a sentence, and why it's fitting would maybe be helpful for people visiting this question in the future.
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Have you eliminated 近年?
  
  – user27280
  3 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

3

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

words

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

• 
  
  
  

  
  2
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Did you consider 以前?
  
  – Ringil
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  以前 is a great word for this situation!
  
  – ajsmart
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  @Ringil A quick answer with this word in a sentence, and why it's fitting would maybe be helpful for people visiting this question in the future.
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  7 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Have you eliminated 近年?
  
  – user27280
  3 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

words

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

share|improve this question

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

asked 9 hours ago

Felipe OliveiraFelipe Oliveira

1,977719

2 Answers
2

active

oldest

votes

2

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

share|improve this answer

edited 7 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…
  
  – ajsmart
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.
  
  – ajsmart
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352
  
  – ajsmart
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

2

以前 might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２ 今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Note that some other dictionaries like 大辞林 and 明鏡 think the referred to time is relatively far in the past: 今よりもだいぶ前 for the former and 現在より（かなり）前 for the latter.　But I think this word fulfills your requirement for the vagueness of the time pretty well.

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

share|improve this answer

edited 6 hours ago

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  6 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

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2

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

share|improve this answer

edited 7 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…
  
  – ajsmart
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.
  
  – ajsmart
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352
  
  – ajsmart
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

2

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

share|improve this answer

edited 7 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…
  
  – ajsmart
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.
  
  – ajsmart
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  9 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  


• 
  
  
  

  
  1
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352
  
  – ajsmart
  8 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

share|improve this answer

edited 7 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

share|improve this answer

edited 7 hours ago

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

answered 9 hours ago

ajsmartajsmart

4,19121237

2

以前 might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２ 今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Note that some other dictionaries like 大辞林 and 明鏡 think the referred to time is relatively far in the past: 今よりもだいぶ前 for the former and 現在より（かなり）前 for the latter.　But I think this word fulfills your requirement for the vagueness of the time pretty well.

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

share|improve this answer

edited 6 hours ago

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  6 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

2

以前 might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２ 今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Note that some other dictionaries like 大辞林 and 明鏡 think the referred to time is relatively far in the past: 今よりもだいぶ前 for the former and 現在より（かなり）前 for the latter.　But I think this word fulfills your requirement for the vagueness of the time pretty well.

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

share|improve this answer

edited 6 hours ago

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133

• 
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!
  
  – Felipe Oliveira
  6 hours ago
  

  
  
  
  

add a comment | 

以前 might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２ 今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Note that some other dictionaries like 大辞林 and 明鏡 think the referred to time is relatively far in the past: 今よりもだいぶ前 for the former and 現在より（かなり）前 for the latter.　But I think this word fulfills your requirement for the vagueness of the time pretty well.

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

share|improve this answer

edited 6 hours ago

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133

share|improve this answer

edited 6 hours ago

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133

answered 7 hours ago

RingilRingil

3,80021133