desde vs de

Question

They both mean from, how do you tell when to use which one?

Answer 1

I think a better translation for desde would be "since". That seems to be the primary way that word is used.

The little word de is used far more often and in more circumstances. It is almost always the word you want to mean "from"- unless you mean "since".

Answer 2

If you are looking for a little toe-hold to keep you from slipping off of the face of this mountain, here it is:

When I am asked in Spanish how long I have lived in Spain, the only response I need to give is:

"Desde diciembre."

It means, "since December, as was previously indicated."

Two words. Both start with 'd.' It's easy to remember.

Think of something you have been doing since December, and you'll at least have one small part of this language down cold.

Answer 3

Well "de" its all about the context, 'cause "de" also means OF, Example made OF wood > hecho DE madera .... And its also used to express possesion, Example, "DE quien es esa lampara?, La lampara es DE Sean"... And DESDE could be replaced by EXAMPLE "Desde NY a LA son 1933 KM" you can replace it with a DE "De NY a LA son 1933km", EXCEPT when you're talking about time, EXAMPLE "DESDE que era niño"... "DESDE que se enojo conmigo, ya no me habla". Hope It helps.

Thank you very much for the input, I'm struggling with the translation, I don't think I'm going to make it. (I'm just a beginner) - Maria-Russell, Oct 9, 2010

Answer 4

Here's some tips I gleaned from About.com:

As a general rule, it can be said be said that desde more strongly indicates motion from a location, although it is frequently used where no destination is given.

Also, desde followed by a noun indicates when an action begins, followed by a time, to indicate when an action begins, followed by a phrase, to indicate when an action begins:

There are numerous cases where de, not desde, must be used to translate "from." Many of those are instances where in translation "of" can be substituted for "from," even if awkwardly.

Answer 5

Two meanings - 'since' as described in this thread and "from" when indicating the origin of an action. Some examples of the "from" meaning.

You can call from the office Puede llamar desde la oficina.

Esa foto se tomó desde mi casa. That picture was taken from my house.

Lluvia desde arriba hacer mucho ruido.

Rain from above makes a lot of noise.

There are also several idioms that use desde.