Here's My Theory

A Few Moments?

Moment (ˈmō-mənt): a minute portion or point of time.

This is an extremely vague measurement of time. It is also a very popular amount of time given when someone keeps someone else waiting.

Example: The doctor will be in to see you in just a moment.

Few (ˈfyü): not many persons or things.

This is slightly vaguer than the moment, because it doesn’t even specify what “thing” there will be a small amount of. The moment at least specifies that it is measuring time.

Here’s my point:

There have been too many times where I’ve been told that something will take “just a few moments”. What does that statement even mean? If I’m on the phone and waiting to speak to someone, a recording that tells me that it will be a few moments is really telling me absolutely nothing.

A moment is not an exact amount of time, and a few is not an exact amount of anything. So how is it that something can take a vague amount of something that is in itself a vague amount? If a moment lasts 2 minutes, does ‘a few moments’ mean 10 minutes? If so, why can’t it just be a 10-minute-long moment?

It’s really just a safe loophole that gives someone a fictitious amount of time so that they can’t be held responsible if it takes longer than usual. Enough with this moments nonsense, just tell me you have no idea how long it’s going to take or give an estimate.