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La oficina del gobierno está abierta desde las ocho hasta las cuatro.

La oficina del gobierno está abierta desde las ocho hasta las cuatro.
The government office is open from eight until four.
From Lesson 121:Since and until (desde, hasta)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about La oficina del gobierno está abierta desde las ocho hasta las cuatro.

Why do we use desde and hasta here instead of just de and a?
Both are correct! You could also say de las ocho a las cuatro (from eight to four). However, using desde (from/since) and hasta (until) emphasizes the exact span of time a bit more strongly, translating closer to "from eight until four."
Why is there a las before ocho and cuatro?
In Spanish, when you talk about the time of day, you always use the feminine article las (or la for one o'clock). This is because it secretly refers to las horas (the hours). So, desde las ocho essentially means "from the eight hours."
Why does this sentence use está instead of es for "is open"?
We use está (from the verb estar) because being open is a temporary state or condition, not an unchanging characteristic of the building. The office changes from open to closed every day.
Why does abierta end in an -a?
Abierta (open) is an adjective describing la oficina (the office). Since oficina is a feminine noun, the adjective must also end in -a to match it.
What does del mean in del gobierno?
Del is a mandatory combination of two words. Whenever the preposition de (of/from) is followed directly by the masculine article el (the), they merge to form del. Here, it means "of the" government.

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