<p><strong>Could I say something in the past tense that wasn't expected like "战争为期十年“?</strong></p>

<p>Yes you can. </p>

<p><code>为期</code> is originally a V-O phrase, literally,</p>

<ul>
<li>为: as, being</li>
<li>期: period, deadline</li>
</ul>

<p>Putting them together, <code>为期</code> means <code>(to be done) by/within (a certain period)</code>, which implies the limit is intentionally set. E.g.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>我等你，三年为期。 I'll wait for you for 3 years.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>However, the phrase 为期 as a whole can also be used as a verb, and with that usage the sense of 'intentionally set time limit' is dimmed. It merely means <code>to last</code>. E.g.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>为期三年的等待。A waiting that lasted for 3 years.</p>
</blockquote>

<p><code>战争为期十年</code> is another example for this usage.</p>

<hr>

<p><strong>How formal is 为期？ Could it ever be used in a regular conversation?</strong></p>

<p>It sounds formal, but it could be used in regular conversation.</p>

<p>In spoken language, the shorter the sentence is, the more people tend to avoid using formal words. So if <code>战争为期十年</code> is the whole sentence, it sounds more casual to say <code>战争持续了十年</code> or even more colloquially <code>战争打了十年</code>.</p>

<p>In a long sentence though, it is okay to use formal words if they can shorten the sentence or simplify sentence structure. Because <code>为期</code> is shorter than <code>持续了</code>, <code>在一场为期十年的战争里，...</code> doesn't sound too much more serious than <code>在一场持续了十年的战争里, ...</code>. This rule applies to other formal/informal phrases too.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2014-07-29T22:52:41.793Z
2014-07-29T22:52:41.793Z
NS.X.
<p>In a recent podcast I've been listening to - imandarinpod - the term 为期 was mentioned. It was loosely explained to mean "to last" as in for a period of time. 
I know that we can say something like "回忆为期三天“ - which makes sense. But, in all of the examples of 为期 I've seen it looks like it has been for "intentional periods of time". Could I say something in the past tense that wasn't expected like</p>

<p>"战争为期十年“? </p>

<p>Also, how formal is 为期？ Could it ever be used in a regular conversation?</p>

<grammar>
How Formal is 为期 (wei2qi1)－ to last？
# How Formal is 为期 (wei2qi1)－ to last？

(Asked by: username_0 on 2014-07-29)

In a recent podcast I've been listening to - imandarinpod - the term 为期 was mentioned. It was loosely explained to mean "to last" as in for a period of time.
I know that we can say something like "回忆为期三天“ - which makes sense. But, in all of the examples of 为期 I've seen it looks like it has been for "intentional periods of time". Could I say something in the past tense that wasn't expected like

"战争为期十年“?

Also, how formal is 为期？ Could it ever be used in a regular conversation?

**Tags:** grammar


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2014-07-29. Score: 3

**Could I say something in the past tense that wasn't expected like "战争为期十年“?**

Yes you can.

`为期` is originally a V-O phrase, literally,

* 为: as, being
* 期: period, deadline

Putting them together, `为期` means `(to be done) by/within (a certain period)`, which implies the limit is intentionally set. E.g.

> 我等你，三年为期。 I'll wait for you for 3 years.

However, the phrase 为期 as a whole can also be used as a verb, and with that usage the sense of 'intentionally set time limit' is dimmed. It merely means `to last`. E.g.

> 为期三年的等待。A waiting that lasted for 3 years.

`战争为期十年` is another example for this usage.

---

**How formal is 为期？ Could it ever be used in a regular conversation?**

It sounds formal, but it could be used in regular conversation.

In spoken language, the shorter the sentence is, the more people tend to avoid using formal words. So if `战争为期十年` is the whole sentence, it sounds more casual to say `战争持续了十年` or even more colloquially `战争打了十年`.

In a long sentence though, it is okay to use formal words if they can shorten the sentence or simplify sentence structure. Because `为期` is shorter than `持续了`, `在一场为期十年的战争里，...` doesn't sound too much more serious than `在一场持续了十年的战争里, ...`. This rule applies to other formal/informal phrases too.


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