Question: where does the cell spend most of its time in the cell cycle?
Answer: Interphase

Interphase is the phase of the cell cycle in which a typical cell spends most of its life . During this phase , the cell copies its DNA in preparation for mitosis . Interphase is the ' daily living ' or metabolic phase of the cell , in which the cell obtains nutrients and metabolizes them , grows , reads its DNA , and conducts other '' normal '' cell functions . The majority of eukaryotic cells spend most of their time in interphase . This phase was formerly called the resting phase . However , interphase does not describe a cell that is merely resting ; rather , the cell is living , and preparing for later cell division , so the name was changed . A common misconception is that interphase is the first stage of mitosis . However , since mitosis is the division of the nucleus , prophase is actually the first stage .