A little more to say
How long you’ve been doing something
Llevar + time + gerund
Emphasize time spent doing an ongoing activity.
The pattern
- Llevar conjugated + duration + gerund.
- Regular gerunds: -ar → -ando; -er/-ir → -iendo.
Llevo una hora esperando.
I have been waiting for an hour.
Why it works: Llevo agrees with yo, una hora gives the duration, and esperando names the ongoing activity.
Notice the difference
Lleva una hora esperando.
She/he has been waiting for an hour.
Why it works: For él or ella, llevo changes to lleva. The duration and gerund do not change.
One thing to watch for
Use a gerund here, not the infinitive. Some gerunds change: leyendo, durmiendo.