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Old March 25, 2009, 04:59 AM
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Cuánto tiempo?

One of my former students wrote on my Facebook wall: "Hola ... cuánto tiempo. Como estas? como te va con tu espanol?"

Okay, I get that she's asking how my Spanish is coming along. What I don't get is the "cuánto tiempo" part. The dictionary says that it means "how long". So, is she saying that it's been a long time since we've talked?

Any insights?
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  #2  
Old March 25, 2009, 05:59 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by laepelba View Post
One of my former students wrote on my Facebook wall: "Hola ... cuánto tiempo. Como estas? como te va con tu espanol?"

Okay, I get that she's asking how my Spanish is coming along. What I don't get is the "cuánto tiempo" part. The dictionary says that it means "how long". So, is she saying that it's been a long time since we've talked?

Any insights?
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  #3  
Old March 25, 2009, 07:36 AM
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Thanks! So, I could answer her with something like "Sí - cuánto tiempo. Estoy muy bien. Aprendo mucho español ... pero tengo mucho más que aprender. "
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Old March 25, 2009, 07:57 AM
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I would respond with Sí, hace tiempo.
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Old March 25, 2009, 08:04 AM
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Gotcha. So, the nuance of the difference between cuanto tiempo and hace tiempo?
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Old March 25, 2009, 08:19 AM
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"Cuánto tiempo" is a short form of "Hace cuánto tiempo que no hablamos/nos vemos" ("it's been ages since we talked/met each other").

"Hace tiempo" is mostly the same. Your reply is alright, but I guess Rusty suggested it to use another expression and cut monotony.
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Old March 25, 2009, 09:29 AM
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I would respond: Pues tú, que no te dejas ver....
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Old March 25, 2009, 11:55 AM
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In Spain it's more used your reply ("sí...cuánto tiempo") than the one Rusty told you, but both would work :-)
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Old March 25, 2009, 12:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Tomisimo View Post
I would respond: Pues tú, que no te dejas ver....
o yo que me estaba escondiendo...
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Old March 25, 2009, 08:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Tomisimo View Post
I would respond: Pues tú, que no te dejas ver....
Nope - I'm lost ... I think I know what each of those words means ... but together it makes no sense whatsoever. "All right, you ... that you don't neglect to see..."???????
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