Have you ever wondered when you went to write a prayer related to the elapsed time and didn't know whether to put it “a little while ago” or “a little while ago”?
And like this: A little while ago...; have you seen it?
It is very common to come across this type of writing, but the sentence above is wrong for two reasons: the presence of the initial article “a” and the adverb “behind”.
O verb "have" when it is impersonal, that is, it has no subject, it can be used in expressions that indicate elapsed time.
Therefore, if I want to have the idea that the hours, days or years have passed, I must use the verb “haver” in the 3rd person singular: there is.
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So, the correct thing is to say: I saw her at his house a little while ago. I haven't seen her in a long time. He just arrived.
The use of “behind” is redundant and should be avoided, especially in writing, since the verb “haver” (used in the sense of elapsed time) already has this meaning.
So choose to say/write: a short time or two years ago. Never together (two years ago), for the reasons already explained.
By Sabrina Vilarinho
Graduated in Letters
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
DUARTE, Vânia Maria do Nascimento. "A Little Time Ago or A Little Time Ago?"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/gramatica/a-pouco-tempo-ou-ha-pouco-tempo.htm. Accessed on June 27, 2021.
