Definition

1. Adverbial phrase:
   • At a stretch / in one go: Describes completing an action or task continuously without any pauses, interruptions, or breaks.
   • In one sitting: Specifically refers to doing something, like reading or writing, from start to finish without getting up or stopping.

Usage Examples

• Adverbial phrase:
  • Anh ấy đọc xong cuốn tiểu thuyết một mạch. (He read the entire novel at a stretch.)
  • Cô ấy kể câu chuyện một mạch, không ngừng nghỉ. (She told the story in one go, without stopping.)
  • Tôi viết báo cáo này một mạch trong ba tiếng. (I wrote this report in one sitting for three hours.)

Advanced Usage

• Used to emphasize the continuity, fluency, or unbroken nature of an action, often implying focus or determination.
  • Bài phát biểu của ông ấy tuôn ra một mạch, rất hùng hồn. (His speech flowed out in an unbroken stream, very eloquent.)

Variants and Related Words

• Một hơi: (adverbial phrase) in one breath, often used similarly to mean doing something continuously without stopping.
  • Uống cạn ly bia một hơi. (To drink down a glass of beer in one gulp.)

Synonyms

• Continuously: without interruption.
• Uninterruptedly: in an unbroken sequence.
• Nonstop: without ceasing.

Related Idioms

• Nói một mạch: to speak nonstop, to talk at length without pausing.
  • Cậu bé hào hứng nói một mạch về chuyến đi. (The boy excitedly talked nonstop about the trip.)

1. At a stretch, at a one sitting