Until/ till at the begining of a sentence

Hi,

Is the use of until/till at the beginning of a sentence as in the following sentence common?

Until when are we going to stay in this state of affairs?

Thanks,

MG.

I believe that it is better to start asking this question with "How long".
How long are we...

Thanks.

Is 'how long' appropriate, if I am expecting a date as the answer?

No, I don't think so. For your sentence I believe it is better to use:

'for how long...'

musicgold said:

Hi,

Is the use of until/till at the beginning of a sentence as in the following sentence common?

Until when are we going to stay in this state of affairs?

Thanks,

MG.

Click to expand...

I would say that in the U.S. this would be perfectly acceptable. In your sentence it tends to indicate a bit of frustration at the slow pace with which something is unfolding. To emphasize this you might say "Until exactly when..." I would agree, however, that "for how long..." might be a more common expression.