15 minutes
445
1.0
- noun
:
quince minutos
- We will recess for 15 minutes... ...after which we will hear the closing arguments.
- approximately 15 minutes
- about 15 minutes
- take 15 minutes
Examples
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You got 15 minutes to tell me more.
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I would say 15 minutes maximum.
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I will be there in 15 minutes.
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- Listen, I told you to be ready 15 minutes ago!
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Breakfast is in 15 minutes.
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I suggest closing the pool for 15 minutes.
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I'll be there in 15 minutes.
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Yeah, I'm about 15 minutes away from there.
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Paul's coming to see you in 15 minutes.
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Paul's coming to see you in 15 minutes.
Synonyms
5
1.0
A period of fifteen minutes
How Long
102
1.0
∞
1.0
353
1.0
445
1.0
- Informal
28
4.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is fully compositional: the numeral 'fifteen' specifies the quantity of the time unit 'minute', so '15 minutes' straightforwardly denotes a period of fifteen minutes (one quarter of an hour). This number + measure construction is cross-linguistically common and follows standard English grammar, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can reliably derive the meaning.
Etymology
15 Minutes comes from how we divide an hour into four parts: one 'quarter' of an hour is 15 minutes on the clock. So people use 15 minutes to mean that short, fixed period of time.