{"id":118897,"date":"2023-07-21T20:54:28","date_gmt":"2023-07-22T00:54:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/depuis-pendant-il-y-a\/"},"modified":"2025-02-03T00:34:50","modified_gmt":"2025-02-03T05:34:50","slug":"depuis-pendant-il-y-a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/depuis-pendant-il-y-a\/","title":{"rendered":"Depuis vs. Pendant vs. Il y a: A Guide for French Learners"},"content":{"rendered":"

Temporal expressions like depuis, pendant<\/em>\u00a0and il y a<\/em> are important in French for discussing time and duration. While they might seem straightforward at first glance, their meanings and uses differ significantly depending on context, often leading to confusion for English speakers.<\/p>\n

Understanding these expressions will help you clearly express ongoing actions, fixed durations, and events in the past.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc skip=4]\u00a0<\/p>\n

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What Are Depuis<\/em>, Pendant<\/em> and Il y a<\/em> Used For?<\/h2>\n

These three French expressions are called temporal expressions<\/strong>. That means that we use them to express the passage of time or to talk about a specific duration of time.<\/p>\n

We’ll explain their meaning and usage in more depth below, but here’s the gist<\/strong>: depuis<\/em> generally translates to “since,”\u00a0pendant\u00a0<\/em>generally translates to “during” and\u00a0il y a\u00a0<\/em>generally translates to “ago.”<\/p>\n

These temporal expressions are often used to talk about the past, but they can also be used to talk about a duration of time in the present and in the future.<\/p>\n

We can also use pour<\/em>\u00a0(for) as a temporal expression, but more on that later.<\/p>\n

Okay, makes sense so far, right?<\/p>\n

The thing is, while these words have distinct meanings, they only have rough translations in English<\/strong>. Each expression\u00a0has a specific use that’s a little more complex than its English counterpart<\/a>.\u00a0This typically leads to confusion among English speakers and frequent errors<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Don’t worry.\u00a0Despite the potential for confusion, the usages of these three temporal expressions have rules and are very regular. Learn the rules and you’ll be using these expressions correctly for all time!<\/em><\/p>\n

Using Depuis<\/em> (Since)<\/h2>\n

The temporal expression d<\/em>epuis<\/em> translates to “since” or “for” in English, but this translation isn’t so simple. In fact, its usage is very specific and certain rules must be followed.<\/p>\n

Use depuis<\/em> when talking about<\/strong> an action that started in the past but continues in the present<\/strong>.<\/p>\n