<blockquote>
<p>Q1: Why is it located before the verb when duration should go after the verb?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The explanation you posted in your comment is correct. Reposting it here for clarity: when expressing the duration of an inaction, the duration complement goes before the verb, following the pattern:</p>
<p><em>Duration + 没 + Verb + 了</em></p>
<blockquote>
<p>Q2: Does the final 了 indicate a change of status suggesting the speaker wants to watch a movie soon?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>No, it indicates the change of status that occurred when you started not doing something.</p>
<p>In your example, it's the change from watching movies to not watching movies.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-06-21T22:19:08.983Z
2020-06-21T22:19:08.983Z
blackgreen
<p>I found the following sentence:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>我很长时间没看电影了。</p>
<p>Wǒ hěn cháng shíjiān méi kàn diànyǐngle.</p>
<p>I haven't watched a movie in a very long time.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>I believe 很长时间 (very long time) is the duration of the action 没看 (haven't watched).</p>
<p><strong>Q1:</strong> Why is it located before the verb when duration should go after the verb?</p>
<p><strong>Q2:</strong> Does the final 了 indicate a change of status suggesting the speaker wants to watch a movie soon?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-06-21T20:20:06.910Z
I just found out my answer to Q1, from Claudia Ross, Jing-heng Sheng Ma - Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar:
*Indicating how long it has been that something has not occurred:*
*In Mandarin, only situations that occur can be described in terms of their duration. If a situation does not occur, the duration pattern cannot be used to describe it. To indicate the length of time that something has not occurred, put the time phrase before the [prepositional phrase +] verb or verb phrase.*
Puco4
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-06-22T08:25:00.110Z
You can answer your own question below actually, instead placing it in a comment.
Kumāra Bhikkhu
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-06-23T11:52:53.383Z
is 长 typically used in this way? I normally associate 久 with time durations
小奥利奥
<grammar><usage><meaning-in-context><sentence-structure><word-order>
Placement of duration complement 很长时间 before a negated verb 没看?
# Placement of duration complement 很长时间 before a negated verb 没看?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-06-21)

I found the following sentence:

> 我很长时间没看电影了。
>
> Wǒ hěn cháng shíjiān méi kàn diànyǐngle.
>
> I haven't watched a movie in a very long time.

I believe 很长时间 (very long time) is the duration of the action 没看 (haven't watched).

**Q1:** Why is it located before the verb when duration should go after the verb?

**Q2:** Does the final 了 indicate a change of status suggesting the speaker wants to watch a movie soon?

**Tags:** grammar, usage, meaning-in-context, sentence-structure, word-order

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: I just found out my answer to Q1, from Claudia Ross, Jing-heng Sheng Ma - Modern Mandarin Chinese Grammar: *Indicating how long it has been that something has not occurred:* *In Mandarin, only situations that occur can be described in terms of their duration. If a situation does not occur, the duration pattern cannot be used to describe it. To indicate the length of time that something has not occurred, put the time phrase before the [prepositional phrase +] verb or verb phrase.*  
> **username_1**: You can answer your own question below actually, instead placing it in a comment.  
> **username_2**: is 长 typically used in this way? I normally associate 久 with time durations  

---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2020-06-21. Score: 1 | Accepted answer

> Q1: Why is it located before the verb when duration should go after the verb?

The explanation you posted in your comment is correct. Reposting it here for clarity: when expressing the duration of an inaction, the duration complement goes before the verb, following the pattern:

*Duration + 没 + Verb + 了*

> Q2: Does the final 了 indicate a change of status suggesting the speaker wants to watch a movie soon?

No, it indicates the change of status that occurred when you started not doing something.

In your example, it's the change from watching movies to not watching movies.


---

