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How to Say ‘About five minutes on foot.’ in Japanese

歩いて5分ぐらいです。

arui te 5 pun gurai desu

[ah-roo-ee teh go foon goo-rah-ee dess]

💬 Usage Tip: [歩いて5分ぐらいです] literally means "it's about 5 minutes walking." [ぐらい] softens it to "about / around," so it sounds approximate, not exact.

Phrase Breakdown

歩いて

arui te

by walking / walking

Indicates the travel method is on foot.

Example

歩いて3分です。

It’s 3 minutes on foot.

Words in this phrase

歩い

arui

[ah-roo-ee]

walk

Stem form of 歩く, used to make 歩いて, meaning by walking or on foot.

Example

駅まで歩いて5分ぐらいです。

It is about a 5-minute walk to the station.

て

te

[teh]

and / by doing

The て-form ending attached to 歩い to form 歩いて.

Example

ここから駅まで歩いて5分ぐらいです。

From here, it is about a 5-minute walk to the station.

5分ぐらい

5 pun gurai

about 5 minutes

A natural approximate time expression.

Example

駅まで歩いて5分ぐらいです。

It’s about 5 minutes to the station on foot.

Words in this phrase

5

5

[go]

five

The number 5; in this phrase it is read ご.

Example

駅は歩いて5分ぐらいです。

The station is about a 5-minute walk away.

分

pun

[foon]

minutes

Counter for minutes; with 5 it is ごふん.

Example

ここから駅まで歩いて5分ぐらいです。

From here, it is about a 5-minute walk to the station.

ぐらい

gurai

[goo-rah-ee]

about / around

Marks an approximate amount of time, meaning about or around.

Example

駅まで歩いて5分ぐらいです。

It is about a 5-minute walk to the station.

です

desu

[dess]

is / it is

Polite form of だ, used to end a sentence politely.

Example

駅まで歩いて5分ぐらいです。

It is about a 5-minute walk to the station.

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