¡Hola, amigos! Today, we’ll discuss two types of the Spanish progressive past.
These tenses can be a bit tricky since they both translate into English as “person + was/were + verb-ing” (for example, “I was eating”).
Are you ready? Let’s dive in!
1. Progressive Simple Past (Pasado Simple Progresivo)
In this case, the focus is on the overall duration or completion of the action. We use it generally to describe a continuous action in the past, with a definite beginning and end. Example:
Ayer yo estuve mirando televisión durante dos horas.
Yesterday I was watching television for two hours.
The conjugation is so easy! We need the following:
person + estar in the simple past + gerund
I’ll show you:
| Person | Estar | Gerund |
|---|---|---|
| yo | estuve | |
| tú | estuviste | |
| usted | estuvo | |
| él ella | estuvo | hablando (ar) comiendo (er) viviendo (ir) |
| nosotros nosotras | estuvimos | |
| ustedes | estuvieron | |
| ellos ellas | estuvieron |
| vos | estuviste | |
| vosotros vosotras | estuvisteis | hablando (ar) comiendo (er) viviendo (ir) |
2. Progressive Imperfect Past (Pasado Imperfecto Progresivo)
It describes an ongoing action in the past without emphasizing its completion. Sometimes it creates a background situation for another event. Example:
Mientras yo estaba mirando televisión, sonó el teléfono.
While I was watching television, the phone rang.
The conjugation is also a piece of cake! We need the following:
person + estar in the imperfect past + gerund
Let’s see:
| Person | Estar | Gerund |
|---|---|---|
| yo | estaba | |
| tú | estabas | |
| usted | estaba | |
| él ella | estaba | hablando (ar), comiendo (er) viviendo (ir) |
| nosotros nosotras | estábamos | |
| ustedes | estaban | |
| ellos ellas | estaban |
| vos | estabas | |
| vosotros vosotras | estabais | hablando (ar) comiendo (er) viviendo (ir) |
TIP! In everyday conversation, the rules are not as rigid, and speakers often use both tenses interchangeably. However, the progressive imperfect past is more frequently used.
Throughout our lessons, you’ll naturally learn the differences between the tenses. In the meantime, let’s play a fun game to practice the one we need more: the progressive imperfect past.
This one is a bit more challenging. You need to determine which of the two progressive pasts is more appropriate in each case. Remember, while both can be correct at times, one may sound a bit more accurate than the other:
