Describe a span of time of 1 or 2 years, without being too literal

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

2

Did you consider 以前?

– Ringil
10 hours ago

@Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.

– Felipe Oliveira
10 hours ago

1

以前 is a great word for this situation!

– ajsmart
10 hours ago

1

Have you eliminated 近年?

– user27280
5 hours ago

2

「[前]{まえ}にその会社で働いてました」とか・・　（1～2年なら「しばらく前に、その会社で働いてました」でもいいと思うけど）

– Chocolate♦
1 hour ago

|
show 2 more comments

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

2

Did you consider 以前?

– Ringil
10 hours ago

@Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.

– Felipe Oliveira
10 hours ago

1

以前 is a great word for this situation!

– ajsmart
10 hours ago

1

Have you eliminated 近年?

– user27280
5 hours ago

2

「[前]{まえ}にその会社で働いてました」とか・・　（1～2年なら「しばらく前に、その会社で働いてました」でもいいと思うけど）

– Chocolate♦
1 hour ago

|
show 2 more comments

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

I'm looking for a word like "sometime ago", "a while ago", that is good for describing a 1-2 years span of time.

I feel like しばらく前 is for shorter spans of time, and 昔 is for longer ones. Is there something in the middle I could use here?

I wanna say something like:

I worked for that company sometime ago

Without being literal about how much time it has been since I've worked there

しばらく前、その会社で働きました。

words

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

asked 12 hours ago

Felipe Oliveira

1,982719

2

Did you consider 以前?

– Ringil
10 hours ago

@Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.

– Felipe Oliveira
10 hours ago

1

以前 is a great word for this situation!

– ajsmart
10 hours ago

1

Have you eliminated 近年?

– user27280
5 hours ago

2

「[前]{まえ}にその会社で働いてました」とか・・　（1～2年なら「しばらく前に、その会社で働いてました」でもいいと思うけど）

– Chocolate♦
1 hour ago

|
show 2 more comments

2

Did you consider 以前?

– Ringil
10 hours ago

@Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.

– Felipe Oliveira
10 hours ago

1

以前 is a great word for this situation!

– ajsmart
10 hours ago

1

Have you eliminated 近年?

– user27280
5 hours ago

2

「[前]{まえ}にその会社で働いてました」とか・・　（1～2年なら「しばらく前に、その会社で働いてました」でもいいと思うけど）

– Chocolate♦
1 hour ago

Did you consider 以前?

– Ringil
10 hours ago

@Ringil No, not at all. Actually, I believe that's the first time i'm reading this word.

– Felipe Oliveira
10 hours ago

以前 is a great word for this situation!

– ajsmart
10 hours ago

Have you eliminated 近年?

– user27280
5 hours ago

「[前]{まえ}にその会社で働いてました」とか・・　（1～2年なら「しばらく前に、その会社で働いてました」でもいいと思うけど）

– Chocolate♦
1 hour ago

|
show 2 more comments

3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

以前{いぜん} might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Note that some other dictionaries like 大辞林 and 明鏡 think the referred to time is relatively far in the past: 今よりもだいぶ前 for the former and 現在より（かなり）前 for the latter.　But I think this word fulfills your requirement for the vagueness of the time pretty well.

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

edited 7 mins ago

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!

– Felipe Oliveira
9 hours ago

add a comment |

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

edited 9 hours ago

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?

– Felipe Oliveira
12 hours ago

1

They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

1

Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!

– Felipe Oliveira
11 hours ago

1

Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

add a comment |

I think「数年前{すうねんまえ}」is a versatile option.

「数年前その会社で働いてたよ」- (colloquial)

「数年前だけど、その会社で働いたことあるよ」- (informal)

「数年前のことですが、その会社に勤めたことがあります」- (formal-polite)

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

That’s true, it’s like “a few years ago”... I wonder if people use it naturally in that context though, despite being the most logic one from a western standpoint. I’ve seen it used in things like 数メートル先も

– Felipe Oliveira
10 mins ago

add a comment |

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3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

以前{いぜん} might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

edited 7 mins ago

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!

– Felipe Oliveira
9 hours ago

add a comment |

以前{いぜん} might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

edited 7 mins ago

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!

– Felipe Oliveira
9 hours ago

add a comment |

以前{いぜん} might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

edited 7 mins ago

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

以前{いぜん} might be what you're looking for. From デジタル大辞泉

２今より前の時点。現在から見て近い過去。副詞的にも用いる。「―と違って今では」「―会ったことがある」

Using your example you might say:

以前、その会社で働いていました

I think it'd be fairly close to something like I used to work for that company in English.

edited 7 mins ago

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

edited 7 mins ago

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

answered 9 hours ago

Ringil

3,81021133

That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!

– Felipe Oliveira
9 hours ago

add a comment |

That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!

– Felipe Oliveira
9 hours ago

That's cool, thanks a lot for the answer!!!

– Felipe Oliveira
9 hours ago

add a comment |

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

edited 9 hours ago

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?

– Felipe Oliveira
12 hours ago

1

They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

1

Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!

– Felipe Oliveira
11 hours ago

1

Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

add a comment |

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

edited 9 hours ago

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?

– Felipe Oliveira
12 hours ago

1

They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

1

Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!

– Felipe Oliveira
11 hours ago

1

Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

add a comment |

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

edited 9 hours ago

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

So in my experience, if we want to describe a couple years without being specific, we would use the following:

何年か｛なんねんか｝

This seems to be what you are trying to describe, and I am sure that there are other ways to do it, but keeping it simple in this case is probably for the best.

Using the example phrase you provided, I would say the following:

何年か前、その会社で働いていました。

EDIT:
On further though of this answer, I thought that I should make some additional appendages.

何年か is not specific to the number of years, but it is typically implied to be more than 1, maybe 2 years, as the translation could reasonably be a few years ago.

If you're looking for something more specific, you could say 1，2年前, but that is probably more specific than what you are looking for.

If you're specifically trying to be non specific about when it was that you worked there, you can also just say: 前、その会社...

As has been stated in the other answer, 以前 can also work.

edited 9 hours ago

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

edited 9 hours ago

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

answered 12 hours ago

ajsmart

4,19121237

I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?

– Felipe Oliveira
12 hours ago

1

They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

1

Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!

– Felipe Oliveira
11 hours ago

1

Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

add a comment |

I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?

– Felipe Oliveira
12 hours ago

1

They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

1

Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!

– Felipe Oliveira
11 hours ago

1

Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

I see, thanks a lot for the answer! I know this may probably be a different question, but why did you choose 働いていました over 働きました? Is it simply Was working vs worked? Or do you feel there is something else there that makes it more natural?

– Felipe Oliveira
12 hours ago

They are both grammatically correct. I see the working as an ongoing past-tense action, so using the ている form felt more natural to me. It might be wise to consider asking this in a separate question though, just to see what others think. jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/…

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Admittedly, my instincts have been known to be wrong before, but I think it also feels more natural.

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

Ok, I’ll try to read a bit about it and if I’m still not sure about it, I might ask another question, thanks a lot!!

– Felipe Oliveira
11 hours ago

Here's another answer I wrote about the construct. japanese.stackexchange.com/a/51701/22352

– ajsmart
11 hours ago

add a comment |

I think「数年前{すうねんまえ}」is a versatile option.

「数年前その会社で働いてたよ」- (colloquial)

「数年前だけど、その会社で働いたことあるよ」- (informal)

「数年前のことですが、その会社に勤めたことがあります」- (formal-polite)

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

That’s true, it’s like “a few years ago”... I wonder if people use it naturally in that context though, despite being the most logic one from a western standpoint. I’ve seen it used in things like 数メートル先も

– Felipe Oliveira
10 mins ago

add a comment |

I think「数年前{すうねんまえ}」is a versatile option.

「数年前その会社で働いてたよ」- (colloquial)

「数年前だけど、その会社で働いたことあるよ」- (informal)

「数年前のことですが、その会社に勤めたことがあります」- (formal-polite)

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

That’s true, it’s like “a few years ago”... I wonder if people use it naturally in that context though, despite being the most logic one from a western standpoint. I’ve seen it used in things like 数メートル先も

– Felipe Oliveira
10 mins ago

add a comment |

I think「数年前{すうねんまえ}」is a versatile option.

「数年前その会社で働いてたよ」- (colloquial)

「数年前だけど、その会社で働いたことあるよ」- (informal)

「数年前のことですが、その会社に勤めたことがあります」- (formal-polite)

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

I think「数年前{すうねんまえ}」is a versatile option.

「数年前その会社で働いてたよ」- (colloquial)

「数年前だけど、その会社で働いたことあるよ」- (informal)

「数年前のことですが、その会社に勤めたことがあります」- (formal-polite)

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

answered 56 mins ago

sazarando

5,495720

That’s true, it’s like “a few years ago”... I wonder if people use it naturally in that context though, despite being the most logic one from a western standpoint. I’ve seen it used in things like 数メートル先も

– Felipe Oliveira
10 mins ago

add a comment |

That’s true, it’s like “a few years ago”... I wonder if people use it naturally in that context though, despite being the most logic one from a western standpoint. I’ve seen it used in things like 数メートル先も

– Felipe Oliveira
10 mins ago

That’s true, it’s like “a few years ago”... I wonder if people use it naturally in that context though, despite being the most logic one from a western standpoint. I’ve seen it used in things like 数メートル先も

– Felipe Oliveira
10 mins ago

add a comment |

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