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French Grammar

Prepositions of Time (pendant, depuis, pour)

Distinguishing between pendant, depuis, and pour to express completed duration, ongoing situations, and planned future time.

Level A2 Category Grammar

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Lesson Summary

Distinguishing between pendant, depuis, and pour to express completed duration, ongoing situations, and planned future time.

Grammar

Three Ways to Express Duration

The prepositions pendant, depuis, and pour are used to situate an action within a temporal framework. Their selection depends on whether the action is viewed as completed, ongoing, or intended for the future. The verb tenses with which they combine differ accordingly.

Pendant, Depuis, Pour – Core Distinctions

Preposition	Meaning	Tense Used	Example
pendant	during / for (completed duration)	passé composé or imparfait (habit)	J’ai étudié pendant trois heures. (I studied for three hours.)
depuis	since / for (ongoing action)	present tense	Je travaille ici depuis deux ans. (I have been working here for two years.)
pour	for (planned future duration)	futur proche or present	Je pars pour une semaine. (I am leaving for a week.)

Pendant – Completed Duration

Pendant indicates the length of a completed action. It is typically used with the passé composé or the imparfait when referring to a repeated past habit.
- Nous avons marché pendant deux heures.
- Quand j’étais petit, je lisais pendant des heures.

Depuis – Ongoing Situation

Depuis links a point in the past to the present moment, indicating that the action or state is still in progress. The verb appears in the present tense, not in a past tense.
- J’habite à Lyon depuis 2020. (I have been living in Lyon since 2020.)
- Elle est malade depuis lundi. (She has been ill since Monday.)

Pour – Planned Future Duration

Pour expresses a duration that is anticipated or scheduled for the future.
- Je vais rester en France pour six mois.
- Nous avons du pain pour trois jours.

Examples

J'ai dormi pendant dix heures la nuit dernière.
Completed duration with pendant.
Il apprend le français depuis un an.
Ongoing action with depuis and the present tense.

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Prepositions of Time (pendant, depuis, pour)Distinguishing between pendant, depuis, and pour to express completed duration, ongoing situations, and planned future time.Select the correct time preposition based on whether the action is finished, still in progress, or projected into the future.GrammarA2grammarLearn French GrammarFrench GrammarThree Ways to Express DurationThe prepositions pendant, depuis, and pour are used to situate an action within a temporal framework. Their selection depends on whether the action is viewed as completed, ongoing, or intended for the future. The verb tenses with which they combine differ accordingly.