待機時間が長い
このレストランは待機時間が長いから、予約したほうがいいよ。
This restaurant has a long wait time, so you should make a reservation.
Having a long period of waiting before something happens or before one can proceed.
新しいスマホを買うために、店で待機時間が長い。
To buy a new smartphone, there's a long wait time at the store.
病院の待機時間が長くて、診察まで3時間待った。
The hospital had a long wait time, so I waited 3 hours for my appointment.
Often used to describe delays in services, appointments, or systems where waiting is required before proceeding.
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Common Contexts
This phrase is frequently used in service industries (restaurants, hospitals, customer support) and technology (software updates, system processing). Pay attention to the particle 'が' which marks '待機時間' as the subject being described by '長い'.
Gold Rule
Avoid Overgeneralization
Do not confuse '待機時間が長い' with '待ち時間が長い'. While similar, '待機時間' often implies a more structured or expected waiting period (e.g., system standby), whereas '待ち時間' is more general.
Word Origin
Composed of 待機 (taiki, 'waiting/standby') and 時間 (jikan, 'time'), with the particle が (ga) marking the subject and 長い (nagai, 'long') as the adjective describing the waiting period. The phrase emerged in modern Japanese as service industries expanded, particularly in contexts like customer service, healthcare, and technology support.
Usage Notes
Commonly used in everyday contexts to express frustration or concern about delays. The phrase can apply to physical waiting (e.g., in line) or metaphorical waiting (e.g., system processing time). In formal settings, alternatives like '待ち時間が長くかかる' may be used.