Des de fa tres dies, la meva mare té febre.

It means for three days now or for the last three days.

A helpful way to think about it is:

• fa tres dies = three days ago / it has been three days
• des de fa tres dies = since three days ago, so in natural English: for three days

In this sentence, it tells you how long your mother has had the fever.

Catalan often uses the present tense where English uses present perfect.

So:

• La meva mare té febre des de fa tres dies.
• literally: My mother has fever since three days ago
• natural English: My mother has had a fever for three days

This is very normal in Catalan. If a situation started in the past and is still continuing now, Catalan commonly uses the present.

This is a very common point of confusion.

• fa tres dies by itself usually means three days ago

  • Va arribar fa tres dies. = He arrived three days ago.

• des de fa tres dies means for three days now

  • Té febre des de fa tres dies. = She has had a fever for three days.

So fa tres dies gives a point in the past, while des de fa tres dies gives a duration continuing up to the present.

In Catalan, possessives are often used with a definite article:

• la meva mare = my mother
• el meu pare = my father
• la seva casa = his/her house

This is different from English, where you normally do not use the with possessives.

So la meva mare is the normal Catalan structure.

In Catalan, many illnesses or physical states are expressed without an article:

• té febre = has a fever
• té gana = is hungry / literally has hunger
• té set = is thirsty / literally has thirst
• té son = is sleepy / literally has sleepiness

English often uses a in has a fever, but Catalan normally just says té febre.

Té is the third-person singular form of tenir (to have):

• jo tinc = I have
• tu tens = you have
• ell/ella té = he/she has

The accent in té is important because it shows both pronunciation and distinguishes it from te, which can mean tea or an unstressed pronoun in other contexts.

So here:

• la meva mare té febre = my mother has a fever

Yes. Catalan is flexible here.

You can say:

• Des de fa tres dies, la meva mare té febre.
• La meva mare té febre des de fa tres dies.

Both are correct.

The version with des de fa tres dies at the beginning gives a little more emphasis to the duration. The second version may feel slightly more neutral.

The comma is common and natural when that time phrase comes at the beginning of the sentence:

• Des de fa tres dies, la meva mare té febre.

It helps separate the introductory time expression from the main clause.

However, in informal writing, some people may omit it. The meaning does not change.

Normally, no, if you mean for three days.

Fa tres dies on its own usually means three days ago, so:

• Fa tres dies, la meva mare va començar a tenir febre. = Three days ago, my mother started having a fever.

But if the meaning is she has had a fever for three days, you need:

• Des de fa tres dies or
• Fa tres dies que la meva mare té febre

Both are standard ways to express this ongoing duration.

They mean basically the same thing:

• Des de fa tres dies, la meva mare té febre
• Fa tres dies que la meva mare té febre

Both mean My mother has had a fever for three days.

The second structure, fa... que, is also very common in Catalan for actions or states that began in the past and continue now.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation is:

• des ≈ dess
• de ≈ duh or a very light de
• fa ≈ fah

So roughly: dess-duh-fah

In connected speech, it sounds smooth and quick. The stress is usually easy here because each word is short and clear.

Because Catalan, like several Romance languages, often uses tenir (to have) for physical conditions and sensations.

For example:

• tenir febre = to have a fever
• tenir gana = to be hungry
• tenir set = to be thirsty
• tenir mal de cap = to have a headache

So this is a normal Catalan pattern that does not always match English word for word.

Mare means mother. In translation, it can correspond to mother, mum, or mom, depending on tone and variety of English.

So:

• la meva mare could be translated as my mother
• in more everyday English, often my mum or my mom

The Catalan word itself is neutral and standard.