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Spanish (Latin America)

### Expressing Duration with "Llevar"

When you want to talk about how long an ongoing action has been happening—like how long you've been practicing a hobby—English uses "have been doing". In Spanish, we use a simpler structure with the verb **llevar**.

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To express this, use a present tense conjugation of **llevar**, followed by the amount of time, and then the gerund (the *-ando* or *-iendo* form) of the action verb.

**llevar** + [amount of time] + **gerund**

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### Using "Llevar" with Different Subjects

Because **llevar** is a regular *-ar* verb in the present tense, simply conjugate it to match whoever is doing the activity.

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### Asking Questions and General Time

You don't always have to state an exact number of months or years. You can use phrases like **mucho tiempo** (a long time), or ask questions using **cuánto tiempo** (how much time).

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Duration (llevar + gerund)

adjective

adverb

auxiliary verb

conjunction

determiner

expression

interjection

noun

numeral

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Definite articles and 'to be' (el, la, soy)

Masculine and feminine pairs (el hermano, la hermana)

Basic sentences and negation (no)

Indefinite articles (un, una)

Formal and informal you (tú vs. usted)

Plural pronouns and the verb to be (somos, son)

Making nouns plural (-s, -es)

Plural articles (los, las, unos, unas)

Noun gender exceptions

Adjective agreement

Invariable adjectives

State and location (estar)

Ser vs. estar

There is / there are (hay)

Hay vs. estar

To have (tener)

Possession (de)

Possessive adjectives (mi, tu, su)

Regular -ar verbs

Yes/No questions

What and who (qué, quién)

Regular -er verbs

Regular -ir verbs

Asking where (dónde, adónde)

How, when, and why (cómo, cuándo, por qué)

How much and how many (cuánto)

Days of the week

Going to a place (ir a)

Preposition contractions (al, del)

In and by (en)

With me and with you (conmigo, contigo)

Prepositional pronouns (mí, ti)

Conjunctions (y, o, pero)

Giving reasons (porque)

Stem-changing verbs (e to ie)

Stem-changing verbs (o to ue)

Stem-changing verbs (e to i)

Irregular yo forms (hago, salgo)

To know (saber vs. conocer)

Weather expressions (hace, está)

Desires and plans (querer)

Ability and requests (poder)

Obligations (tener que)

Expressing likes (me gusta)

Plural likes (me gustan)

Verbs like gustar (encantar, doler)

Very vs. a lot (muy, mucho)

Numbers 0 to 15 (cero, uno, dos…)

Numbers 16 to 31 (dieciséis, veinte…)

Numbers 30 to 1000 (treinta, cien, mil)

Months of the year (enero, febrero, marzo)

Seasons and dates (el dos de mayo)

Telling time (es la..., son las...)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (primero, segundo, tercero)

Reflexive pronouns and verbs (me, te, se, nos)

Direct object pronouns (lo, la, los, las)

The near future (ir a)

The present continuous (estar + -ando, -iendo)

Near demonstrative adjectives (este, esta, estos, estas)

Medium demonstrative adjectives (ese, esa, esos, esas)

Comparatives of inequality (más / menos ... que)

Comparatives of equality (tan ... como)

Indefinite and negative pronouns (algo, nada, alguien, nadie)

Affirmative commands

Far demonstratives (aquel, aquella)

Possessive pronouns (el mío, el tuyo)

Shortened indefinite adjectives (algún, ningún)

Adverbs of quantity (demasiado, bastante)

Adverbs of frequency (a menudo, a veces)

Adverb formation (-mente)

Exclamations (¡Qué...!)

Irregular comparatives (mejor, peor, mayor, menor)

Relative superlatives (el más... de)

Adjective intensification (-ísimo)

Indirect object pronouns

Pronoun placement with infinitives

Double object pronouns (me lo, te la)

The 'se lo' rule (se lo, se la)

Impersonal statements (se)

Impersonal obligation (hay que)

Personal obligation (deber)

Starting actions (empezar a)

Finishing and quitting actions (terminar de, dejar de)

Repeating actions (volver a)

Continuing actions (seguir + gerundio)

Question	Answer
to have been (doing) for a time	llevar
the academy	la academia
I have been studying at the academy for a year.	Llevo un año estudiando en la academia.
the semester	el semestre
to perfect	perfeccionar
the technique	la técnica
She has been perfecting her technique for two semesters.	Ella lleva dos semestres perfeccionando su técnica.
the level	el nivel
advanced	avanzado
I don't know the academy, but I am looking for an advanced level.	No conozco la academia, pero estoy buscando un nivel avanzado.
to dedicate	dedicar
the passion	la pasión
How many months have you been dedicating time to this passion?	¿Cuántos meses llevas dedicando tiempo a esta pasión?
the theory	la teoría
the practice	la práctica
They have been reading about theory and practice for a long time.	Ellos llevan mucho tiempo leyendo sobre la teoría y la práctica.
It is necessary to know the theory to reach the advanced level.	Es necesario saber la teoría para llegar al nivel avanzado.
Photography is his passion and he dedicates a lot of time to it.	La fotografía es su pasión y le dedica mucho tiempo.
You have been playing the guitar for five years.	Ustedes llevan cinco años tocando la guitarra.
My grandfather is writing a book about the practice of chess.	Mi abuelo está escribiendo un libro sobre la práctica del ajedrez.
We have been trying to perfect this project for a long time.	Llevamos mucho tiempo intentando perfeccionar este proyecto.
We are learning a very interesting technique.	Estamos aprendiendo una técnica muy interesante.
My sister has been working in that academy for two years.	Mi hermana lleva dos años trabajando en esa academia.
I know that it is difficult, but you must dedicate more time to your passion.	Sé que es difícil, pero debes dedicar más tiempo a tu pasión.
How much time have you been studying the theory of art?	¿Cuánto tiempo llevan ustedes estudiando la teoría del arte?
The professor is explaining the theory.	El profesor está explicando la teoría.
I have been practicing the piano for a semester.	Llevo un semestre practicando el piano.