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Llevo un semestre practicando el piano.

Llevo un semestre practicando el piano.
I have been practicing the piano for a semester.
From Lesson 158:Duration (llevar + gerund)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about Llevo un semestre practicando el piano.

Why do we use llevo instead of a translation of 'I have been'?
In Spanish, the formula llevar plus an amount of time plus a gerund (an -ing word) is the most common way to say you have been doing something for a while. Instead of translating 'I have been' word-for-word, you use llevo to express how much time you 'carry' doing the action.
Where is the word for 'for' in this sentence? Why isn't it 'llevo por un semestre'?
With this specific llevar structure, you don't need a preposition like por or durante to mean 'for'. The verb llevar already builds in the idea of measuring elapsed time, so you just place the time period directly after the verb: llevo un semestre.
How does the word practicando fit into this structure?
Practicando is the gerund (the -ing form) of practicar. For -ar verbs, you drop the -ar and add -ando. In this sentence, it pairs with llevo to tell us exactly what ongoing action you have been doing for the last semester.
Why does it say 'el piano' instead of just 'piano'?
In Spanish, when you talk about playing or practicing a musical instrument, you generally include the definite article (el, la, etc.). So you say practicar el piano or tocar la guitarra, even if English sometimes drops the 'the'.

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