Question

Updated on 3 Feb 2023

yuriko_jp

3 February

Japanese

Korean
English (US)

Question about English (US)

"We still have a ways to go in terms of understanding this disease."

This is a sentence from a footage presented by Ted.
To me it seems strange that the word "ways" have "a" in front of it because "ways" is
plural.

Is this natural?
Would someone please explain why?

Answers

cudzoo

3 February

Featured answer

English (US)

Yes, that one is hard to justify. I’m assuming it is incorrect, and yet we say it anyway.

“Ways” is kind of a quaint way of saying “long way”.

“We have a long way to go.”
“It’s a ways.” (I can’t defend it, but it is the way we say it.)

I think this may be an American thing. I’m not sure they say this in England.

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lia_sp

3 February

English (US)

@yuriko_jp hello, “ways” here isn’t being used in its normal sentence structure, but in fact as part of a phrase “a ways to go”.

It’s commonly used in a sentence as a figure of speech that there’s still a lot left or something is still very far off from completion/destination.

Bromista5

3 February

English (US)

Very good point. This is one of the rare instances in English where a “plural” word goes with “a”. It’s an expression to stress that something is far away.
It’s a ways down the road, there.
3 years from now is a long ways away.

You can use it without the s on way and it’s still correct.

We still have a way to go in terms of understanding the disease.

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cudzoo

3 February

English (US)

Yes, that one is hard to justify. I’m assuming it is incorrect, and yet we say it anyway.

“Ways” is kind of a quaint way of saying “long way”.

“We have a long way to go.”
“It’s a ways.” (I can’t defend it, but it is the way we say it.)

I think this may be an American thing. I’m not sure they say this in England.

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yuriko_jp

3 February

Japanese

@lia_sp @Bromista5 @cudzoo
So "a ways to go" is one expression as a whole.
It's grammatically incorrect but people use it.
(Except for British people)
Am I right?

Thank you so much to three of you.

cudzoo

3 February

English (US)

@yuriko_jp yes, but not only in that expression. You will see and hear “a ways” as a substitute for “a long way” in several expressions when you mean “a period of time or distance yet to go.”

A ways off.
A ways away.
It’s a ways.

And, in terms of the British, I imagine they say this, too, I just don’t know how accepted it is as proper.

Because, I think, (I think…I’m not sure), this is actually accepted usage in American English, despite how colloquial it seems.

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yuriko_jp

3 February

Japanese

@cudzoo Hmm...
Interesting!
I'll keep it in mind!
Thank you sooooo much!

cudzoo

3 February

English (US)

@yuriko_jp you’re very welcome!

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"We still have a ways to go in terms of understanding this disease."

This is a sentence from a footage presented by Ted.
To me it seems strange that the word "ways" have "a" in front of it because "ways" is
plural.

Is this natural?
Would someone please explain why?

"We still have a ways to go in terms of understanding this disease."This is a sentence from a footage presented by Ted.To me it seems strange that the word "ways" have "a" in front of it because "ways" is plural.Is this natural?Would someone please explain why? See a translation

@yuriko_jp hello, “ways” here isn’t being used in its normal sentence structure, but in fact as part of a phrase “a ways to go”. It’s commonly used in a sentence as a figure of speech that there’s still a lot left or something is still very far off from completion/destination.

@yuriko_jp you’re very welcome!

"We still have a ways to go in terms of understanding this disease."

This is a sentence from a footage presented by Ted.
To me it seems strange that the word "ways" have "a" in front of it because "ways" is
plural.

Is this natural?
Would someone please explain why?

@yuriko_jp hello, “ways” here isn’t being used in its normal sentence structure, but in fact as part of a phrase “a ways to go”.

It’s commonly used in a sentence as a figure of speech that there’s still a lot left or something is still very far off from completion/destination.