A2 (Elementary)Lesson 12: Prepositions & Time in Depth
Portuguese has three ways of putting time on the table, and English speakers mix them up constantly. Há and faz plus a length of time mean "ago"; the same two words with a present-tense verb mean "have been doing it for that long, and still am"; and desde takes a starting point rather than a length. The tense is the whole trick — where English says "I have lived here for two years", Portuguese says Moro aqui há dois anos.
há / faz + a length of time = "ago": Cheguei há dois anos / Cheguei dois anos atrás (I arrived two years ago). Atrás goes after the time and is what you'll hear most.
Still going on? Use the PRESENT tense. Faz dois anos que eu moro aqui = Moro aqui há dois anos (I've lived here for two years — and still do).
English says "have been", Portuguese says "am". Reaching for a past tense changes the meaning: Morei aqui há dois anos means you moved out.
Ask about it with Faz quanto tempo que…? or Há quanto tempo…? (How long…?)
desde takes a starting point, not a length: desde 2020, desde março, desde que cheguei (since I arrived).
faz is spoken and everyday, há is written and formal — same meaning, pick by register.
Spelling trap: há dois anos (two years ago, past) versus daqui a dois anos (two years from now, future).
há/faz + length of time + past verb = ago · faz + length + que + PRESENT tense = have been (still true) · present clause + há + length = same meaning · desde + starting point (2020, março, que cheguei) = since
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"How long have you been here?" is one of the first questions any Brazilian will ask you, and the answer needs a structure English does not have. Portuguese puts the verb in the present — Moro aqui há dois anos — where English insists on "have lived". Say Morei aqui há dois anos instead and you have just told the person you moved away. The desde half matters just as much: desde takes a date, há and faz take a count, and swapping them produces a sentence Brazilians will hear as broken even though every word is right.
| The question you're answering | The pattern | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| How long ago? | há / faz + length + past verb | Cheguei há dois anos. | I arrived two years ago. |
| For how long — and still going? | Faz + length + que + present | Faz dois anos que eu moro aqui. | I've lived here for two years. |
| Since when? | desde + a starting point | Moro aqui desde 2020. | I've lived here since 2020. |
The first one is finished business. The second and third are still running. Hold on to that split and the rest is detail.
| Portuguese | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Você está no Brasil há quanto tempo? | How long have you been in Brazil? |
| Faz duas horas que estou na fila. | I've been in line for two hours. |
| Comprei este carro há seis meses. | I bought this car six months ago. |
| Eles namoram desde o ano passado. | They've been dating since last year. |
| Faz tempo que não converso com ela. | I haven't talked to her in a long time. |
| A loja está fechada desde segunda. | The store has been closed since Monday. |
| Ele chegou faz pouco tempo. | He arrived a little while ago. |
| Nós estudamos juntos há dois semestres. | We've been studying together for two semesters. |
Using a past tense for something still true. This is the big one: ❌ Morei aqui há dois anos says you moved out. ✅ Moro aqui há dois anos. (I've lived here for two years — and still do.) Present tense, every time.
Pluralizing faz or há. Both are impersonal and never agree with the time: ❌ Fazem dois anos, ❌ Hão dois anos → ✅ Faz dois anos / Há dois anos. You will hear fazem from Brazilians constantly; in writing it is marked as sloppy.
Putting a length after desde. Desde wants a point: ❌ Moro aqui desde dois anos → ✅ Moro aqui há dois anos (for two years) or ✅ Moro aqui desde 2023. (since 2023.)
Doubling up with há … atrás. Pick one or the other: ❌ há dois anos atrás → ✅ há dois anos / dois anos atrás (two years ago). Very common in speech, flagged in every editing guide.
Typing daqui há for the future. ❌ Daqui há uma semana → ✅ Daqui a uma semana. (A week from now.) If faz doesn't fit, neither does há.
Using por for a stretch that is still running. Por closes the stretch: Morei no Rio por um ano (I lived in Rio for a year — it's over) versus Moro no Rio há um ano (I've lived in Rio for a year — I'm still there).
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