Expressing distance with 离 [ lí ]

One of the words to know is 离, lí (from). It is used to measure the distance between two places. The sentence structure takes a little getting used to, but once you know, it always works the same!

Whether you’re just saying if a place is close, or far from another place, or want to be more specific, the pattern stays the same.  

Place 1 + 离 + Place 2 + distance ( 近/远)

公共汽车站 + 离 +火车站 + 很 近

Example

公共 汽 车站 离 火 车站 很 近。The bus station is very close to the railway station.

Negation

This structure always stays the same, whether you’re saying it in the negative form ...

Place 1 + 离 + Place 2 + 不+ distance ( 近/远)

Examples

学校 离 我 家 不 远。 My school is not far from my home.

火车站 离 我们 不 远 了。We are not far from the train station.

Question form

... or asking a question.

Place 1 + 离 + Place 2 + distance + question word

Example

上海 离 北京 远 吗？Is Shanghai far from Beijing?

Distances, what distances?

If you want to be more precise than just “close”, “not close”, far, not far, you can also choose to talk about a specific distance using miles; kilometers or any other unit to measure a distance.

Structure

Place 1 + 离 + Place 2 + Verb + distance (miles, kilometers, stops…)

Example

这儿 离 飞机场 有 三 十 五 公里。The airport is thirty-five kilometers from here.

Measuring time

You can also use 离 to measure duration; i.e. to talk about how far something is in time, like this:

structure

Moment 1 + 离 + Moment 2 + Verb + duration

Notice that as usually one measures a duration from the current moment, the starting point is often implied. You could say “from now to my mother’s birthday” but that sounds strange in English, doesn't it? It also does in Chinese.

Examples

离 我 妈妈 的 生日 有 两 个 星期。 My mother’s birthday is in two weeks.

离 考试 还有 一 个 月。 There’s still a month before the exam.

离 下班 还有 二十 分钟。There’s still 20 minutes before we finish work.

Implied place

As with measuring a duration, the starting point can also be implied when you’re talking about a distance, as long as, in the context, it is clear what the speaker is talking about.

Examples

离 公共汽车站 走路 十 分钟。There’s a ten minute walk [from here] to the bus station.

离 机场 有 七 站 路。There are seven stops to the airport.

我家离公司很近。

Wǒ jiā lí gōngsī hěn jìn. 

My home is very close to the company.

Mi casa está muy cerca de la empresa.

美国离中国很远。

Měiguó lí Zhōngguó hěn yuǎn. 

America is far away from China.

Estados Unidos está muy lejos de China.

这个酒店离火车站很近。

Zhège jiǔdiàn lí huǒchēzhàn hěn jìn. 

This hotel is very close to the train station.

Este hotel está muy cerca de la estación de tren.

那个地方离这儿太远了，我不想去。

Nàge dìfāng lí zhèr tài yuǎn le, wǒ bù xiǎng qù. 

That place is too far from here, I don't want to go.

Ese lugar está demasiado lejos de aquí, no quiero ir.

你家离超市远吗？

Nǐ jiā lí chāoshì yuǎn ma? 

Is your house far from the supermarket?

¿Está tu casa lejos del supermercado?

你们公司离地铁站近吗？

Nǐmen gōngsī lí dìtiězhàn jìn ma? 

Is your company near the subway station?

¿Tu empresa está cerca de la estación de metro?

你家离学校多远？

Nǐ jiā lí xuéxiào duō yuǎn? 

How far is your home from school?

¿Cuánto de lejos está tu casa de la escuela?

这个酒店离机场有多远？

Zhège jiǔdiàn lí jīchǎng yǒu duō yuǎn?

How far is this hotel from the airport?

¿A qué distancia está este hotel del aeropuerto?