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as long as

idiom · idiom

4 meanings of as long as

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  1. 1
    idiom
    Used to introduce a condition that must be met for the statement to hold.

    The bank will release the funds as long as all documents are signed.

    As long as the weather holds, the festival will go ahead outdoors.

    Similarprovided, providing, if

    Oppositeunless

    Note

    Here the phrase sets a minimum rather than raising a doubt. It often follows a shrug in the main clause (I don't mind, I don't care) and then names the one thing that matters, as in the Backstreet Boys song As Long as You Love Me (1997). When a clause could also mean duration, test it against the "for the whole time" meaning: swap in provided that, and if the sense survives, it is this one.

  2. 2
    idiom
    Used to mean throughout the entire time that something continues or remains the case; while.

    As long as the negotiations continued, both sides held their fire.

    He promised to support the charity as long as he held office.

    Similarwhile

    Note

    Time is the measure here: the main clause holds while the other situation lasts. It drifts easily toward since. In as long as you're here, you may as well help, being here is less a span than a reason already in place. That causal shading sets it apart from the requirement expressed by the conditional meaning.

  3. 3
    idiom
    Used to express that two things are equal in length or duration, comparing one directly with another.

    The rehearsal ran as long as the actual performance did.

    The new bridge is as long as the previous structure was.

    Note

    Equal measure is the plain job here, and the comparison can be scaled: put a multiplier in front, and three times as long as I expected means three times longer than I did. What follows the second as is a full clause with its own verb. The prepositional use takes a bare noun phrase instead.

  4. 4
    idiom
    Used to compare something to a named thing that is equal to it in length or in time taken.

    The new tunnel is almost as long as the river itself.

    Their journey took as long as a transatlantic flight.

    Note

    Here a measured amount follows the phrase rather than a clause: three hours, a transatlantic flight. With a number, it often sets a generous upper figure, as in these meetings can last as long as three hours, and stresses how long something may run. The same words followed by a full clause belong to the clause comparison.

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