How Long Ago Did It Happen?

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You already know how to ask when something happened. All you have to do is ask, ¿Cuándo? For example,

• ¿Cuándo llegaste a Madrid? - When did you arrive in Madrid?
• ¿Cuándo terminaste la tarea? - When did you finish the homework?
• ¿Cuándo fuiste a la fiesta? - When did you go to the party?

However, if you wish to ask how long ago something happened or how long something has been happening, you need to memorize the Spanish phrase:

¿Hace cuánto tiempo que…?
or
¿Cuánto tiempo hace que…?

Either form of the question is correct, and you will complete the question with a conjugated verb in either the present or past tense.

Generally,

Por ejemplo:

Usually, the response will follow this format:

hace + time period + que + action

Please note that hacer is always in the third person singular form (hace) and does NOT change to reflect the quantity of time.

Por ejemplo:

1. Hace tres años que estudio. ¡Ya me canso!
- I’ve studied for three years. I’m getting tired of it! OR
- I’ve been studying for three years. I’m getting tired of it!

2. Hace seis meses que manejo buses.
- I’ve driven buses for six months. OR
- I’ve been driving buses for six months.

3. Hace un año que trabajé en el cine.
- It’s been a year since I worked in the movie theater.

4. Hace una semana que viajé a los Estados Unidos.
- It’s been a week since I traveled to the United States.

In the past tense, you have the option of putting “hace + time period” at the end of the sentence, thereby eliminating the need for que.

Por ejemplo:

1. ¿Cuánto tiempo hace que tuvo a su hijo?
- How long ago did you have your son?
Tuve a mi hijo hace tres semanas.
- I had my son three weeks ago.

2. ¿Hace cuánto tiempo que Uds. vivieron en Chile?
- How long ago did you live in Chile?
Vivimos en Chile hace once años.
- We lived in Chile eleven years ago.

3. ¿Hace cuánto tiempo que fuisteis a la playa?
- How long ago did you go to the beach?
Fuimos a la playa hace dos días.
- We went to the beach two days ago.

You can also ask how long ago it’s been since you haven’t done something. In this case, you will use the present tense, and the translation of these questions can be a little tricky. For example,

Since When?

When you respond, you can answer with one of the following:

- desde + noun
- desde que + conjugated verb
- desde hace + time period

For example, take the question, “¿Desde cuándo trabajas aquí?" You can formulate your answer in one of the following ways:

Por ejemplo:

 

In the next section we'll talk about Spanish Adverbs (describing actions).

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