Spanish · A2 · Everyday language
Growing Day by Day in Spanish
This guide helps you talk to your child about the passage of time, celebrating how long they've been doing activities and remembering things that happened recently.
What you'll learn
- Learn to express ongoing actions using 'desde hace' (for/since).
- Describe completed past events using 'hace' (ago).
- Master time-related vocabulary like weeks, months, and years.
Spanish phrases for growing day by day
Estás en esta escuela desde hace un mes.
You have been at this school for a month.
'Desde hace' describes something that started in the past and continues now.
Tienes esta mochila desde hace un año.
You have had this school bag for a year.
Use 'desde hace' + a period of time (un año) for ongoing situations.
Estás en el club de fútbol desde la semana pasada.
You have been in the football club since last week.
Use 'desde' (without 'hace') for a specific starting point in time.
Se te mueve el diente desde hace una semana.
Your tooth has been loose for a week.
'Se te mueve el diente' is the natural way to say a tooth is loose.
Compramos tus zapatillas hace una semana.
We bought your trainers a week ago.
'Hace' placed before the time period means 'ago'.
Perdiste tu primer diente hace un mes.
You lost your first tooth a month ago.
Use the past tense (Pretérito) with 'hace' for completed events.
Visitamos a tu amigo hace tres días.
We visited your friend three days ago.
Remember to include the personal 'a' when visiting a person.
Terminaste la tarea hace una hora.
You finished your homework an hour ago.
'Hace una hora' indicates the action is finished.
Hear these phrases and practise them
Tildi plays every phrase out loud, tests you in five-minute lessons and builds them into bedtime stories from your own picture books.
Try it free for 7 daysKey words
hace
ago
Used for finished actions in the past.
desde hace
for / since
Used for actions that began in the past and are still true.
la mochila
school bag / backpack
A common school-related noun.
las zapatillas
trainers / sneakers
Often used for sports shoes.
Ongoing vs. Completed Time
In Spanish, we distinguish between actions still happening and those that are over using 'desde hace' and 'hace'.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Ongoing (For/Since) | Present Tense + desde hace + Time | Vivo aquí desde hace dos años. (I have lived here for two years.) |
| Completed (Ago) | Past Tense + hace + Time | Comí hace dos horas. (I ate two hours ago.) |
More examples
¿Desde hace cuánto tiempo estudias?
How long have you been studying for?
A common way to ask about the duration of an ongoing activity.
Fuimos al parque hace poco.
We went to the park a little while ago.
'Hace poco' is a useful phrase meaning 'recently'.