Question 1

Why is llevan in the indicative instead of the subjunctive after a pesar de que?

Accepted Answer

We use the indicative (llevan) after a pesar de que when we are declaring a known, established fact. The speaker knows for certain that the sailors have been sailing for three days. If we used the subjunctive, it would mean 'Even if they have been sailing...' or refer to a hypothetical situation.

Question 2

Why does the Spanish sentence use the present tense verb llevan when the English translation says 'have been sailing'?

Accepted Answer

To express an action that started in the past and is still ongoing right now, Spanish uses the verb llevar in the present tense + a time period + a gerund (an -ando or -iendo word). Therefore, llevan tres días navegando is the most natural way to say 'they have been sailing for three days.'

Question 3

Could I translate this using the present perfect, like han estado navegando por tres días?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you could use han estado navegando, which is a literal translation of the English 'have been sailing'. However, the structure using llevar + time + gerund is much more common and sounds more natural in everyday conversational Spanish.

Question 4

Why do we need the que in a pesar de que here? Couldn't we just use a pesar de?

Accepted Answer

We use a pesar de que (even though) when introducing a new clause with a conjugated verb, like llevan. If you only use a pesar de (despite / in spite of), it must be followed by an infinitive verb or a noun, for example: a pesar de los tres días... (despite the three days...).

A pesar de que los marineros llevan tres días navegando, no ven el puerto.

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