several hours vs a few hours

Both 'several hours' and 'a few hours' are correct phrases, but they convey slightly different meanings. 'Several hours' implies a larger quantity of time, typically more than three or four hours, while 'a few hours' suggests a smaller amount, usually around three or less. The choice between the two depends on the specific duration you want to express.

Last updated: April 04, 2024 • 376 views

several hours

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate a relatively large quantity of time, usually more than three or four hours.

Use 'several hours' when you want to convey a significant amount of time, typically more than three or four hours.

Examples:

The repair work took several hours to complete.
She spent several hours studying for the exam.

Show examples from the web [+]

Cook for several hours until thickened.
Goma airport is closed for several hours.
All told, several hours of mind-numbingly boring work.
They had eaten meat several hours earlier.
At least you'd sleep for several hours straight.
It came over the wire several hours ago.
The controller chafes after several hours.
Well, I need several hours to further reappraise the situation.
And when we returned after several hours he was still standing there.
Yet it takes you several hours to fulfill a simple task.
I've been trying to contact you for the past several hours.
No word from annie or ben in several hours.
Then his aircraft went off course and disappeared over the woods near the Caucasus Mountains several hours ago.
Well, I've been waiting here for several hours.
After several hours, Jeremy's dashboard was beginning to take shape.
Dallas P.D. found that gun in your car several hours ago.
The move will take several hours out of their day.
You also told us the councilman went missing for several hours.
Listen, I've been here for several hours now.
They got several hours head start on you.

Alternatives:

many hours
a number of hours
quite a few hours
a good few hours
a handful of hours

a few hours

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate a small quantity of time, usually around three or less hours.

Use 'a few hours' when you want to convey a short amount of time, typically around three or less hours.

Examples:

I'll be back in a few hours.
It only took a few hours to finish the project.

Show examples from the web [+]

The sun will be comin' in a few hours.
The Initiative would have found everything in a few hours.
We needed a baby-sitter for a few hours.
You can isolate them for a few hours, but...
Symptoms disappear after a few hours.
Raptors are due back in a few hours.
I just need you to keep Buffy away for a few hours.
Let me be Old Noll a few hours more.
We just pushed it back a few hours.
Okay, so first it was a few hours.
Our flight leaves in a few hours.
If I could only close my eyes for a few hours.
N-no, we don't rent rooms for a few hours.
Canada's only a few hours away.
In a few hours it'll all be over.
No Overlord can exist for more than a few hours without a mask.
My book party's in a few hours.
So you can go home for a few hours.
And you played with them for a few hours.
He's only been at work a few hours.

Alternatives:

a couple of hours
a small number of hours
a handful of hours
a bit of time
a short while

What Our Customers Are Saying

Our customers love us! We have an average rating of 4.79 stars based on 283,125 votes.
Also check out our 2,100+ reviews on TrustPilot (4.9).

"TextRanch has been a great help to me, especially at work because I often email my boss."
Jhey April 2025
"Thank you!"
Sachi Nakama July 2024
"I have literally been through chat, PI, claude, bard and bing and I got conflicting answers! Thank you! Human intelligence reigns!"
Retha July 2024
"Faster than AI"
CYNTHIA December 2023
"This was very helpful and I personally think this site is the best."
Kaden October 2023
"It was extremely thorough and very helpful!"
imperialelisa October 2023
"7 years without any disappointment. Always 100% satisfied. You guys are the best in the world at what you do. Thank you so much :)"
Zubair Alam October 2023
"In a world of text messages and online communication, this is great to have as a live tool. Thank you."
Selena October 2023
"Without textranch I would be stuck!"
宏祐 October 2023
"Accuracy and fast response. Personal comments from editor. Thank you."
Clh September 2023
"I wasn't aware of this service, it's fascinating and more reliable than standard IA tools available on the internet"
Arturo September 2023
"The fact that you can get reliable fast feedback on your texts."
Vinicius Antonio August 2023
"you guys are better than grammarly i'm being honest here"
ordinary July 2023
"OMG! This is really good than any other text correction tools I've used so far. Highly recommend this."
Vehan July 2023
"Very fast and accurate. thank you."
mojtaba July 2023
"I love this app because it's help to writing skills all of students ♥️"
Tarisini July 2023
"This was exactly the mistake I was looking for, the wording dind´t sound right at first. Better than grammarly!"
Ente July 2023
"The immediate help that I received was reassuring and very satisfactory. Thanks."
priiiyanshuu July 2023
"this helps A LOT for my studies."
kathnunez02 June 2023
"Woow!! I would never have expected such precision! Thank you soooo much!!"
Berta June 2023
"Real Time Editor and not AI. Many Thanks."
Priya June 2023
"The very first thing excites me about Textranch is how much your editors care."
sepideh June 2023
"The fact that texts are checked by human editors rather than by AI, etc. I appreciate this!"
Анна June 2023
"Feel welcome, immediate response, high quality feedback"
martin.roy June 2023