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Faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe.

Faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe.
The team has been waiting for the boss for two hours.
FromLesson 11inHardcore Portuguese (Brazil)

Questions & Answers about Faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe.

Why is it faz and not fazem, even though duas horas is plural?
When fazer expresses elapsed time, it is impersonal and always stays in 3rd‑person singular. So you say: Faz duas horas..., Faz três dias..., Faz 20 anos..., never fazem in this use.
Can I use há or tem instead of faz?

Yes.

  • Há duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe. (standard, a bit more formal)
  • Tem duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe. (very common in Brazil in speech/informal writing) All three mean the same thing in this structure.
Is the que after the time expression necessary?

In this fronted pattern it is required: Faz/Há/Tem duas horas que....
If you move the time expression to the end, you drop que: A equipe espera a chefe há/faz/tem duas horas.

Does esperar need a preposition like English “wait for”?

Not necessarily. In Brazil, esperar is usually a direct‑object verb: esperar alguém. So A equipe espera a chefe is perfect.
You can also say esperar por: A equipe espera pela chefe. Both are fine in Brazil; without the preposition is more common.

Should it be à chefe (with crase) instead of a chefe?

No. Here a is just the feminine article of chefe. There is no preposition required by esperar, so no crase.
Use à only when the verb demands the preposition a: Entregaram o relatório à chefe.

Why is the verb singular in a equipe espera if a team is many people?

Equipe is a collective noun and grammatically singular, so the verb agrees in the singular: A equipe espera.
In informal speech you might hear plural agreement by meaning (silepse), but standard usage keeps it singular. A later pronoun can be ela (agreeing with the feminine noun) or eles (focusing on the members), depending on what you want to emphasize.

How do I say the waiting is over (a finished action)?

Use a past form plus a duration with por or durante:

  • A equipe esperou a chefe por/durante duas horas. Or express “since an event” with faz/há:
  • Faz/Há duas horas que a chefe chegou.
Can I use the progressive, like está esperando, instead of the simple present espera?

Yes:

  • Faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe. (perfectly natural)
  • Faz duas horas que a equipe está esperando a chefe. (emphasizes the ongoing process) Both are correct; the progressive adds extra “in‑progress” flavor.
How do I ask “How long has the team been waiting?”

Common options:

  • Há quanto tempo a equipe espera a chefe?
  • Faz quanto tempo que a equipe espera a chefe?
  • Quanto tempo faz que a equipe espera a chefe?
Where else can I put the time phrase?

All are natural:

  • Faz/Há/Tem duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe.
  • A equipe espera a chefe há/faz/tem duas horas. You can front it or place it at the end with no change in meaning.
What does já add in Já faz duas horas...?
Já adds an “already”/“by now” nuance: Já faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe = “It’s already been two hours that the team has been waiting.”
Why a chefe and not o chefe? What gender is chefe?

Chefe is a common‑gender noun. Use the article to mark gender:

  • a chefe (female boss)
  • o chefe (male boss) You may hear chefa in informal speech, but a chefe is the standard form.
How do I pronounce the tricky words here?

Approximate Brazilian pronunciations:

  • faz: [fas] (in many regions) or [faʃ] (e.g., Rio)
  • equipe: [e-KEE-pee]
  • chefe: [SHEH-fee]
  • duas: [DOO-as]
  • horas: [OH-ras]/[OH-raʃ] (regional final -s variation)
How do I say “It hasn’t been two hours yet”?
  • Ainda não faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe.
  • Não faz duas horas ainda que a equipe espera a chefe. Both are idiomatic; ainda conveys “yet.”
How do I talk about this in the past (e.g., “had been waiting”)?

Use the imperfect with fazer (or haver) plus the imperfect of the main verb:

  • Fazia duas horas que a equipe esperava a chefe quando ela chegou. This corresponds to English “The team had been waiting for two hours when she arrived.”
    You can also use the preterite of fazer for a completed “ago” at a past reference point: Fez duas horas, ontem, que a chefe chegou.
Can I use desde to express this duration?

Use desde with a starting point, not a duration:

  • Correct: A equipe espera a chefe desde as três (da tarde).
  • Not natural: ✗ desde duas horas (use há/faz/tem duas horas instead).
How would I replace a chefe with a pronoun?

In everyday Brazilian Portuguese, people typically avoid clitic pronouns here and say:

  • A equipe espera ela.
  • A equipe está esperando ela. Formal options (more written/European in feel) are:
  • A equipe espera-a. (enclisis; formal) You can also avoid the object by using por:
  • A equipe espera por ela.
Is equipe the same as time in Brazil?

Both can mean “team,” but there’s a tendency:

  • equipe is common for work/project teams.
  • time is especially common for sports teams.
    Overlap exists; in many contexts either is understood.
Why duas horas (not dois horas)? What about “half an hour”?

Hora is feminine, so the numeral agrees: uma hora, duas horas.
“Half an hour” is meia hora (not ✗meio hora).

Do I need any commas in the original sentence?
No. Faz duas horas que a equipe espera a chefe. takes no comma. Only add commas if you insert other parenthetical elements.
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