duration

American  

[doo-ray-shuhn, dyoo-] / dʊˈreɪ ʃən, djʊ- /

noun

• durations
  plural

1. 

   the length of time something continues or exists (often used withthe ).

2. continuance in time.

3. (in the philosophy of Bergson) a temporal continuum, intuitively known, within which the élan vital operates.

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duration British  

/ djʊˈreɪʃən /

noun

1. the length of time that something lasts or continues

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• durational
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• durations
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of duration

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Medieval Latin dūrātiōn-, stem of dūrātiō, from Latin dūrāt(us) “lasted” (past participle of dūrāre “to last”; see dure ²) + -iō -ion

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Explanation

Duration is how long something lasts, from beginning to end. A duration might be long, such as the duration of a lecture series, or short, as the duration of a party. The noun duration has come to mean the length of time one thing takes to be completed. The duration of something might be known or not — in past times, the unknown length of time the current war would last was called "the duration. "Musical notes, such as whole notes, half notes, and quarter notes, have different set durations, or lengths of time for which they are held. These varying durations, when put together, create the rhythm of the music.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

duration durations

The Dodgers failed Shohei Ohtani this summer, but now they need to do what is best and set him down for the duration of the playoffs.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

Having followed the paths of these two characters for the duration of the book, the reader is primed for a union that never really comes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2026

The headline figure “may fall short of the market’s most bullish expectations,” but demand compares favorably with the upgraded SU7 model when adjusted for launch duration, Timothy Zhao and others write.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

The longer the loan’s duration, the larger the interest rate risk.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

And finally Ruby Archuleta and Onofre Martinez ushered him to a seat in the first pew, where he sat hunched over with tears in his eyes, intermittently rumbling for the duration of the meeting.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

These may be sold at price discounts as managers of longer-term funds are forced to sell before maturity in order to keep their portfolios’ durations above their own mandated levels.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

The 139 studies differed in how they were designed; some involved relatively small groups of participants, and treatment durations varied considerably.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 15, 2026

For Professor Andy Jones, an expert in endurance performance at the University of Exeter, there are three potential physiological explanations why women could perform better over longer distances or durations.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

"Intolerable heat will be experienced at much larger scales and for longer durations, affecting far more people than previously estimated," the study concluded.

From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026

“But think of the enormous, immeasurable durations it can give you out of time. Every soma-holiday is a bit of what our ancestors used to call eternity'.” John began to understand.

From "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley

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Related Words

• continuation
• extent
• period
• span

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