Duration: fa… que, durant, des de… fins
How long something has been going on is counted by fa plus the term plus que. The verb stays in the present: Fa dos anys que visc aquí — I have been living here for two years. For example: “Fa dos anys que visc aquí” — I have been living here for two years now. A rule from the Catalan course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
How long something has been going on is counted by fa plus the term plus que. The verb stays in the present: Fa dos anys que visc aquí — I have been living here for two years.
Without que the same turn answers "how long ago?": Fa dos anys — two years ago.
Inside a term lives durant — "for, during": Va ploure durant tota la setmana — it rained all week.
The borders are set by des de… fins — "from… to". El mercat és obert des de les vuit fins a les dues — the market is open from eight to two.
Table
| construction | meaning | example |
|---|---|---|
| fa… que | for… now (and still) | Fa dos anys que visc aquí |
| durant | for, during | durant tota la setmana |
| des de… fins | from… to | des de les vuit fins a les dues |
By example
- Fa dos anys que visc aquíI have been living here for two years now
- Va ploure durant tota la setmanaIt rained all week
- El mercat és obert des de les vuit fins a les duesThe market is open from eight to two
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Duration: how does it work in Catalan?
How long something has been going on is counted by fa plus the term plus que. The verb stays in the present: Fa dos anys que visc aquí — I have been living here for two years.
What does it look like in an example sentence Catalan?
“Fa dos anys que visc aquí” — I have been living here for two years now. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.