# duration

/ˈdʊˈɹeɪʃən/ (US) · /djɔːɹˈeɪʃən/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/duration
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. length of time

noun · CEFR B2 · Academic

the length of time that something continues or lasts.

For teachers: the period of time during which something continues to exist or occur. Uncountable in its general sense, though countable when referring to specific intervals.

- The duration of the flight is about three hours from London to Rome.
- The researchers monitored the duration of the symptoms to determine if the new medication significantly shortened the recovery period for the patients.

Usage: Often follows 'for the' to indicate the entire length of an event.

### 2. until the end

noun · CEFR C1 · Formal

the entire time until a situation, like a war or a project, is finished.

For teachers: the full period of time until a current, often difficult, situation concludes. Usually used with the definite article.

- The family moved to the countryside for the duration of the war.
- The temporary restrictions remained in place for the duration of the emergency, only being lifted once the authorities declared the area safe.

Usage: Commonly appears in the fixed phrase 'for the duration'.

### 3. financial sensitivity

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

a way to measure how much a bond's price changes when interest rates move.

For teachers: a measure of the sensitivity of the price of a fixed-income investment to a change in interest rates, expressed as a number of years.

- Investors look at duration to understand the risk of their bond portfolio.
- As interest rates began to climb, the fund manager reduced the portfolio's duration to protect the capital from significant price declines.

Usage: Used as a technical metric in investment banking and portfolio management.

## Examples

- The duration of the flight is about three hours.
- The bank offers a fixed interest rate for the entire duration of the loan agreement.
- While the initial phase of the study was brief, the total duration of the research project spanned several years to ensure the data remained consistent across different seasons.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.