In Italian, asking how long someone has been doing something works very differently from English.
English uses:
- How long have you been…?
- I’ve been doing…
Italian does not use have been in these cases or the past tense.
Instead, Italian uses the present tense + da.
The basic pattern
Question
Da quanto tempo + present tense?
Answer
Present tense + da + time
Da quanto tempo can mean:
- since when
- how long
- for how long
Examples
- Da quanto tempo studi italiano? Studio italiano da due anni.
(How long have you been studying Italian? I’ve been studying Italian for two years.) - Da quanto tempo abiti in Italia? Abito in Italia dal 2015.
(How long have you been living in Italy? I’ve been living in Italy since 2015.)
Questions
How long + Present tense
- Da quanto tempo lavori in questa azienda?
(How long have you been working at this company?) - Da quanto tempo insegni italiano?
(How long have you been teaching Italian?) - Da quanto tempo sei vegetariana?
(How long have you been a vegetarian?)
How to answer correctly in Italian
To answer these questions, Italian uses:
Present tense + da + period of time
Examples:
- Lavoro in questa azienda da tanti anni.
(I’ve been working at this company for many years.) - Insegno italiano da dieci anni.
(I’ve been teaching Italian for ten years.) - Sono vegetariano da tre anni.
(I’ve been a vegetarian for three years)
English vs. Italian
Notice that in English, unlike in Italian, the same question is asked and answered using the present perfect or the present perfect continuous.
This often leads to confusion. English speakers may be misled by the apparent similarity between the English present perfect and the Italian passato prossimo, and as a result try to use the passato prossimo to describe an action or situation that began in the past and continues into the present.
This is incorrect.
In these cases, Italian uses the presente indicativo, not the passato prossimo. The present tense is the correct form to describe actions or situations that started in the past and are still true now.
Typical mistakes and correct forms
- Sono qui da due ore (CORRECT)
Sono stato qui da due ore (WRONG)
(I’ve been here for two hours)
- Studio italiano da tre anni (CORRECT)
Sto studiando italiano da tre anni (WRONG)
(I’ve been studying Italian for three years)
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