I cannot thoroughly understand the following sentence without assuming that "to come" is redudant ("to come" can be ignored without harming the meaning of the whole sentence):
"However, there was a problem and it was one that was to haunt women for a long time to come."
(in "The seven daughters of Eve" by Bryan Sykes, on page 23).
So I mean I have to understand "for a long time to come" = "for a long time".
In case it is an idiom, I'd be glad to learn more about it.
2006-12-19 21:05:20 · 11 answers · asked by roman_king1 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
It does indeed mean for a long time....
2006-12-19 21:07:49 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
For a long time may be past; a long time to come is slang, or an idiom meaning into the future. Doesn't really make sense literally in English either, but is something English speaking people in the west grew up with. It does sound a bit old fashioned now, and is mean to have a bit of feel of prophesy to it as well.
2006-12-19 21:08:53 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It generally means that something happened in the past, and it has effects that last not only from that point in the past, until now, but also for a long time from now. It refers to the length of time. Let me give you an example:
"If you don't have that tooth drilled, it's gonna hurt for a long time."
It might be a little vague just exactly how long it's going to hurt.
Does that imply that it'll be an hour, or two days, or five months, or what? Once that time period is up, is it going to stop hurting?
"If you don't have that tooth drilled, it's gonna hurt for a long time to come."
That's more specific. It means that I'm going to have pain...and have it...and have it...and have it...and have it, on a continuing basis. I think that that's what confuses a lot of people about English - we have a seperate tense for things that happen constantly.
2006-12-19 21:11:07 · answer #3 · answered by supensa 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Long Time To Come
2016-11-07 07:36:23 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
You are quite right in thinking that it is somewhat redundant in terms of sense. Here "for a long time" would have had the same meaning, but the rhythm would have been less pleasant. "For a long time to come" rounds off the sentence and makes it prettier to the ear. That is the reason for using it and, I believe, the only reason -- to make the sentence less sharp and staccato. It is only possible to use it in the present or future tenses, by the way.
2006-12-19 21:15:58 · answer #5 · answered by Doethineb 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
In this case, the words "to come" are a bit redundant because of the verb "was to", which tips off that it's going to happen in the future. It's just a flowery expression that paints a picture, but is strictly unnecessary.
2006-12-19 21:08:53 · answer #6 · answered by TimmyD 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It means that an action or a condition will continue for a long time into the future. "to come" here refers to the time that will "come", so yes, you could say that it is an idiom.
2006-12-19 21:10:08 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
It means that it will lasts far into the future time, or future generations
2006-12-19 21:09:24 · answer #8 · answered by ? 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
well, while a long time and a long time to come are very similar,,,, the second, is used to refer to a more emphasized unlimited longer time,,,,,,, it it used to add importance to the statement,,,,,,,, a long time can actually mean any amount of time,,,,,,,,,, a long time to come also means any amount of time, but implies decades, generations,,,,,, hundreds of years
2006-12-19 21:11:19 · answer #9 · answered by dlin333 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
no you are right in believing its for a long time...it is reffered to relate to the future ....not like ive been doing this for a long time....which relates to the past...
2006-12-19 21:08:09 · answer #10 · answered by askaway 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋