Breakdown of Des que ha començat el novembre, sempre porto un paraigua quan agafo el tren.
un
a
sempre
always
quan
when
el paraigua
the umbrella
Questions & Answers about Des que ha començat el novembre, sempre porto un paraigua quan agafo el tren.
What does des que mean, and how is it different from des de?
Des que means since when it is followed by a full clause with a verb.
- Des que ha començat el novembre = Since November started
- Here, ha començat is a conjugated verb, so des que is the right choice.
By contrast, des de is used before a noun, a date, or a time expression, not before a full clause:
- des del novembre passat = since last November
- des de dilluns = since Monday
So a useful rule is:
- des que + verb
- des de + noun/time expression
Why is it ha començat instead of a simple past form?
Ha començat is the present perfect in Catalan. It is very commonly used to talk about a past event that still matters in the present.
In this sentence, the idea is:
- November started in the past
- the situation continues now
So des que ha començat el novembre fits very naturally.
In many varieties of Catalan, especially in everyday language, the present perfect is often preferred where English might simply say started.
Why does the sentence use the present tense in porto and ?