How do I say in Japanese, from when I do something and till when I do something?
から/ まで (action start and end time)
If we want to talk about from when and to when we do something,
XからYまで
X kara Y made
from X until Y
can be used, such as :
月曜日から金曜日まで働きます。
getsuyoubi kara kinyoubi made hataraki masu.
I work from Monday to Friday.
毎日、１１時から７時まで寝ます。
mainichi juu ichi ji kara shichi ji made ne masu.
Every day, I sleep from 11 pm to 7 am.
Use Ｘから and Ｙまで separately
Just like in English, we can use から and ます independently of each other, such as :
月曜日から働きます。
getsuyoubi kara hataraki masu.
I work from Monday.
金曜日まで働きます。
kinyoubi made hataraki masu.
I work until Friday.
How to ask a question with から / まで
To ask a question about from when and to when we do something, you can replace X and Y in XからYまで with question words, such as :
A :
何曜日から何曜日まで働きますか。
nanyoubi kara nanyoubi made hataraki masu ka.
From what day of the week until what day do you work?
B :
月曜日から金曜日まで働きます。
getsuyoubi kara kinyoubi made hataraki masu.
I work from Monday to Friday.
A :
何曜日から働きますか。
nanyoubi kara hataraki masu ka.
From what day of the week do you work?
B :
月曜日から働きます。
getsuyoubi kara hataraki masu.
I work from Monday.
A :
何曜日まで働きますか。
nanyoubi made hataraki masu ka.
Until what day of the week do you work?
B :
金曜日まで働きます。
kinyoubi made hataraki masu.
I work until Friday.
Compare the action time expression から / まで with に
We have already learned about the action point time that can be expressed with the particle に (ni) in に (action point time).
For example,
毎日、１１時に寝ます。
mainichi juu ichi ji ni ne masu.
Every day, I sleep at 11 pm.
With に, it is the point in the time, and so, there is “no start till the end” thought.
Whereas, with から / まで time expression, such as :
毎日、１１時から７時まで寝ます。
mainichi juu ichi ji kara shichi ji made ne masu.
Every day, I sleep from 11 pm to 7 am.
There is clearly a nuance of a certain continuity of time.
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