Uses of (For , During and While )

Uses of (For , During and While )

For and during

We use for + a period of time to say how long something goes on:

for two hours                    for a week                             for ages

Ø  We watched television for two hours last night.

Ø  Diane is going away for a week in September.

Ø  Where have you been? I've been waiting for ages.

Ø  Are you going away for the weekend?

We use during + noun to say when something happens (not how long):

during the film                during our holiday              during the night

v  I fell asleep during the film.

v  We met some really nice people during our holiday.

v  The ground is wet. It must have rained during the night.

With 'time words' (for example: the morning / the afternoon / the summer), you can usually say in or during:

Ø  It must have rained in the night. (or during the night)

Ø  I'll phone you sometime during the afternoon. (or in the afternoon)     

You cannot use during to say how long something goes on:

Ø  It rained for three days without stopping. (not during three days)

Compare during and for:    

  I fell asleep during the film. I was asleep for half an hour.

During and while Comparison:

We use during + noun:

Ø  I fell asleep during the film.

Ø  We met a lot of interesting people during our holiday.

Ø  Robert suddenly began to feel ill during the exam.          

We use while subject + verb:

Ø  I fell asleep while I was watching TV.

Ø  We met a lot of interesting people while we were on holiday.

Ø  Robert suddenly began to feel ill while he was doing the exam.

Some more examples of while:

We saw Clare while we were waiting for the bus.

While you were out, there was a phone call for you.

Chris read a book while I watched television.