Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit.

I only have ten minutes left.

Breakdown of Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit.

• ich: I
• haben: to have
• die Zeit: the time
• die Minute: the minute
• zehn: ten
• nur noch: only

Questions & Answers about Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit.

In this sentence, what exactly does nur noch mean? Is it just only?

nur noch together normally means only … left or no more than … anymore.

• nur = only
• noch = still, (any) more, yet

When you combine them, nur noch zehn Minuten is best understood as only ten minutes left (and then time is up). It implies that the amount of time has become small and is running out.

Compare:

• Ich habe nur zehn Minuten. – I only have ten minutes. (neutral about whether time is running out)
• Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten. – I only have ten minutes left. (stronger feeling that time is almost over)

Why does German use habe (have) here? Why not something like bleiben (remain), like I have ten minutes left vs Ten minutes remain?

German often uses haben with Zeit to express having time (available):

• Ich habe Zeit. – I have time / I am free.
• Ich habe keine Zeit. – I have no time / I am not free.
• Ich habe zehn Minuten Zeit. – I have ten minutes (of free time).

So Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit is literally I have only still ten minutes time, which naturally corresponds to English I only have ten minutes left.

You can use bleiben as well:

• Mir bleiben nur noch zehn Minuten. – I only have ten minutes left. (literally: only ten minutes remain to me)

Both are correct; haben Zeit is just the very common pattern that learners should know.

Is Zeit necessary here? Could I just say Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten?

Both are possible, but the nuance is slightly different.

• Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten.
  Usually understood as I only have ten minutes (left) – context decides whether this is time, money, battery, etc.

• Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit.
  Explicitly says it is time (free time, availability) that you have left.

In many contexts, Zeit is clear from the situation, so people often drop it and just say Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten.
Including Zeit makes it very clear you are talking about how long you are available.

Why is Zeit singular even though it’s ten minutes?

In German, Zeit is usually treated as an uncountable noun when it means time in general or available time, similar to water or money.

• Ich habe viel Zeit. – I have a lot of time.
• Ich habe wenig Zeit. – I have little time.
• Ich habe zehn Minuten Zeit. – I have ten minutes of time.

The ten minutes are a measure of this uncountable thing Zeit, not ten separate times. So Zeit stays singular: zehn Minuten Zeit (ten minutes of time).

Why is there no article before zehn Minuten Zeit? Why not Ich habe nur noch die zehn Minuten Zeit?

With exact quantities (numbers, amounts, units), German usually does not use an article:

• Ich habe zehn Euro. – I have ten euros.
• Ich habe zwei Geschwister. – I have two siblings.
• Ich habe zehn Minuten Zeit. – I have ten minutes (of) time.

Adding die (Ich habe nur noch die zehn Minuten Zeit) sounds unusual and would be interpreted as those specific ten minutes already known from the context. In normal use, for just stating the amount, you leave the article out.

What case is zehn Minuten Zeit in, and how is the structure analyzed grammatically?

The whole phrase zehn Minuten Zeit is the accusative object of the verb haben.

Inside that phrase:

• Zeit is the main noun (singular, feminine).
• zehn Minuten is a kind of measure phrase describing how much time. You can think of it as ten minutes of time, but German doesn’t need a preposition here.

So structurally:

• Ich – subject (nominative)
• habe – verb
• nur noch – adverbs
• zehn Minuten Zeit – accusative object

Can I move nur and noch around? For example: Ich habe nur zehn Minuten noch Zeit or Ich habe noch nur zehn Minuten Zeit?

Native speakers virtually never say Ich habe nur zehn Minuten noch Zeit or Ich habe noch nur zehn Minuten Zeit in normal speech. The natural, neutral order is:

• Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit.

In German, nur noch is treated almost like a fixed pair when it means only … left, and it sits directly in front of what is limited:

• Ich habe nur noch Zeit bis sechs Uhr.
• Wir haben nur noch wenig Geld.
• Er hat nur noch einen Versuch.

You can move nur noch for emphasis, especially in spoken German:

• Nur noch zehn Minuten habe ich Zeit! – Very strong emphasis on only ten minutes left, often expressing stress or irritation.

But splitting nur and noch the way you suggested sounds odd in this meaning.

What’s the difference between nur and noch on their own?

On their own, they have different core meanings:

• nur

  • basic meaning: only / just
  • limits something in number, amount, or importance
  • Ich habe nur einen Bruder. – I only have one brother.
  • Das ist nur ein Beispiel. – That’s just an example.

• noch

  • common meanings: still / yet / (any) more / else
  • Ich habe noch Zeit. – I still have time.
  • Brauchst du noch etwas? – Do you need anything else / more?
  • Noch nicht. – Not yet.

Together as nur noch, they express only still / only … left and add the idea that the quantity has reduced and is now small.

Are there other common ways to express the same idea as Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit?

Yes, several very natural alternatives:

• Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten.
  Same idea; time is usually clear from context.

• Mir bleiben nur noch zehn Minuten.
  Literally: only ten minutes remain to me. A bit more dramatic.

• Es bleiben nur noch zehn Minuten.
  There are only ten minutes left (in general, not tied to a specific person).

• Es sind nur noch zehn Minuten.
  There are only ten minutes (left). Often used for things like countdowns, exams, events, etc.

All of these can translate to English as There are only ten minutes left or I only have ten minutes left, depending on who the subject is.

How is Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit different from Es dauert zehn Minuten or In zehn Minuten?

They talk about different aspects of time:

• Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit.
  Focus: how long I am available / free.
  → I can keep doing this for ten more minutes, then I must stop.

• Es dauert zehn Minuten. – It takes ten minutes.
  Focus: duration of an action or process.
  → The action itself lasts ten minutes (not about your schedule).

• In zehn Minuten …
  Focus: time until something happens.

  • In zehn Minuten muss ich gehen. – I have to leave in ten minutes.
  • In zehn Minuten beginnt der Film. – The movie starts in ten minutes.

So:

• habe … Zeit = time you are free / available
• dauert … = how long something lasts
• in … Minuten = how long until something happens

Could I use erst instead of nur noch, like Ich habe erst zehn Minuten Zeit?

No, that would change the meaning a lot.

• nur noch = only … left (and that’s little)

  • Ich habe nur noch zehn Minuten Zeit. – I only have ten minutes left.

• erst (in this context) = only so far / so early / already-but-it’s-little

  • Ich habe erst zehn Minuten Zeit. would be interpreted as something like
    I’ve only (so far) had ten minutes of time,
    or It’s only been ten minutes that I’ve had time.
    It does not mean I only have ten minutes left.

So for left / remaining, stick with nur noch, nur, or verbs like bleiben:
Mir bleiben nur noch zehn Minuten.