長ながいこと

Meanings

Adverbial phrase indicating that an action or state continues over an extended period. Often used with verbs in the ～ている form or past tense.

長ながいことお待またせしてすみません。
I'm sorry to have kept you waiting for so long.
彼かれは長ながいこと入にゅう院いんしていた。
He was hospitalized for a long time.

See all 4 example sentences ›

Kanji

長long, leader, superior
事matter, thing, fact
永eternity, long, lengthy

Related words

長ながい間あいだ
Similar meaning, but 長い間 is slightly more formal and can be used in more contexts, including as a noun phrase. 長いこと is more colloquial and adverbial.
ずっと
Also means 'for a long time' or 'all along', but is a single adverb, not a phrase. 長いこと emphasizes the length of time more explicitly.

Written forms

長ながいこと
Standard kanji-kana spelling for the adverbial phrase.
長ながい事こと
Variant using the kanji 事 for こと; less common but seen in some writing.
永ながいこと
Uses 永い, which can emphasize a very long or eternal duration; rare in modern usage.
永ながい事こと
Combination of 永い and 事; very rare.

Etymology

Phrase composed of the adjective 長い (long) and the nominalizer こと (thing/matter), literally 'a long thing', used adverbially to mean 'for a long time'.