旷日持久

曠日持久

kuàngrì-chíjiǔ

idiom #56,324

Meanings

1 protracted and drawn-out
2 dragging on for a long time and wasting time
3 long-drawn-out

Characters

to hold; to last

Examples

HSK 7-9

这场官司旷日持久，耗费了双方大量财力。

Zhè chǎng guānsi kuàngrì-chíjiǔ, hàofèi le shuāngfāng dàliàng cáilì.

The lawsuit dragged on for ages, draining huge sums from both sides.

HSK 7-9

两国的边境谈判旷日持久，至今未有结果。

Liǎng guó de biānjìng tánpàn kuàngrì-chíjiǔ, zhìjīn wèi yǒu jiéguǒ.

The border negotiations between the two countries have dragged on to this day without results.

HSK 7-9

旷日持久的战争让百姓苦不堪言。

Kuàngrì-chíjiǔ de zhànzhēng ràng bǎixìng kǔbùkānyán.

The prolonged war left the common people suffering beyond words.

Tips

history

From 《战国策·赵策四》: describing how a military campaign stretched on for years and exhausted the soldiers. The classical sense of 旷 is 'to waste' time, not merely 'long'.

usage

Almost always negative - implies not just long but wastefully long. Common in legal, diplomatic, or war contexts. Compare to neutral 长期 (long-term).

Stroke Order

旷 kuàng

日 rì

持 chí

久 jiǔ