During/For/While in English
During, for and while are time expressions used to talk about different periods of time.
In this lesson, you’ll learn when to use each time expression and practise using them.
When to use during, for and while?
During
- Used to say when something happens.
- E.g. I fell asleep during the meeting.
- Structure: during + noun
For
- Used to say how long something is.
- E.g. The baby was asleep for 8 hours.
- Structure: for + time period
While
- Used to talk about actions happening at the same time as each other.
- E.g. My mum was cooking while I was playing tennis.
- Structure: while + subject + verb
Examples
We stopped at the shopping centre during our journey.
We have know each other for a long time.
I sometimes listen to music while I'm working.
Practise
Fill the gaps with during, for or while.
Common mistakes learners make
- Mixing up the time expressions
- Using the wrong parts of speech after the times
- Confusing during and while to talk about actions at the same time
Common mistakes learners make
- Mixing up the time expressions
- Using the wrong parts of speech after the times
- Confusing during and while to talk about actions at the same time