Mi tío lleva barba y bigote desde hace años, pero mi hermano prefiere ir sin barba.

In Spanish, llevar is often used to talk about someone’s appearance or what they wear/carry as part of their look.

So:

• lleva barba = he wears a beard / he has a beard
• lleva bigote = he wears a moustache

You could also hear tiene barba, which simply means he has a beard.
But llevar barba sounds very natural when describing someone’s usual look or style.

In Spanish, when talking about physical features, clothing, or general appearance, articles are often omitted.

So Spanish says:

• lleva barba
• lleva bigote

rather than literally lleva una barba or lleva un bigote.

Using una or un here would usually sound more specific, as if you were describing a particular type, size, or style:

• lleva una barba larga
• lleva un bigote fino

Without the article, it simply means he has that feature.

• barba = beard
• bigote = moustache

So barba y bigote means the person has both a beard and a moustache.

A learner should notice that barba does not include the moustache by default in Spanish. If you want to mention both, you often say both words.

Desde hace años is a very common Spanish way to say for years or for many years up to now.

It combines:

• desde = since/from
• hace = ago / makes
• años = years

Together, desde hace años expresses an action or state that started in the past and continues now.

Examples:

• Vivo aquí desde hace años.
• Lleva barba desde hace años.

Even though English usually says for years, Spanish often uses this structure.

Because the beard is something your uncle still has now.

In Spanish, when something began in the past and continues into the present, the present tense is normally used:

• Vive aquí desde 2010.
• Trabaja aquí desde hace meses.
• Lleva barba desde hace años.

English often uses the present perfect in these cases:

• He has worn a beard for years

But Spanish usually prefers the present tense.

Prefiere comes from the infinitive preferir.

This verb is a stem-changing verb:
e → ie in many present-tense forms.

Conjugation in the present:

• yo prefiero
• tú prefieres
• él/ella prefiere
• nosotros preferimos
• vosotros preferís
• ellos prefieren

So mi hermano prefiere means my brother prefers.

Both are possible, but ir sin barba is a very natural way to talk about appearance in Spanish.

Here, ir does not literally mean to go in the movement sense. It can also mean to be dressed/styled/to wear in a certain way.

Examples:

• ir de negro = to be dressed in black
• ir con gafas = to wear glasses
• ir sin barba = to go/be without a beard

So prefiere ir sin barba means he prefers to be clean-shaven / not wear a beard.

Not necessarily.

Sin barba specifically means without a beard. It does not automatically say anything about a moustache.

So your brother could:

• be completely clean-shaven, or
• have a moustache but no beard

If you wanted to say no beard or moustache, you could say something more explicit, such as:

• sin barba ni bigote

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly.

• no tiene barba = he does not have a beard
• prefiere ir sin barba = he prefers to be without a beard

The second version adds the idea of personal preference or choice.
It suggests that your brother deliberately likes that look.

Because sin is a preposition meaning without, and it can follow ir when describing someone’s appearance or style.

Structure:

• ir + con/sin + noun

Examples:

• ir con sombrero = to wear a hat
• ir sin gafas = to be without glasses
• ir sin barba = to be without a beard

This is a common pattern in Spanish.

The accent mark shows that tío is pronounced in two syllables:

• tí-o

Without the accent, Spanish spelling rules might suggest a different pronunciation. The written accent helps show that the i and o are pronounced separately, not as one diphthong.

So:

• tío = uncle

This is useful because many family words have written accents:

• tío
• tía

Grammatically, yes: llevar works the same way for anyone.

For example:

• Lleva gafas
• Lleva el pelo corto
• Lleva tatuajes

So the structure itself is not limited to men.
It just happens that barba y bigote are most commonly associated with men in everyday description.

Pero means but and introduces a contrast.

The contrast here is:

• My uncle has worn a beard and moustache for years
• but my brother prefers to be without a beard

So pero connects two opposite or contrasting ideas about facial hair and personal style.