The Spanish past progressive (also known as the imperfect progressive) helps you describe ongoing actions in the past. When you say “I was eating” or “They were dancing,” you’re using this essential tense that adds depth and context to your storytelling in Spanish.
Formation
To form the Spanish past progressive, you’ll need two elements:
- The imperfect form of estar (estaba, estabas, estaba, estábamos, estabais, estaban)
- The present participle (-ando for -ar verbs, -iendo for -er/-ir verbs)
For example:
- Yo estaba cantando (I was singing)
- Tú estabas comiendo (You were eating)
- Ella estaba bailando (She was dancing)
When to Use It
The Spanish past progressive captures actions that were:
- In progress at a specific moment in the past
- Happening simultaneously with another action
- Ongoing for an extended period
- Interrupted by another action
Key Situations
- Setting the Scene When describing background actions or ongoing situations:
- Los niños estaban jugando en el parque (The children were playing in the park)
- El sol estaba brillando (The sun was shining)
- Simultaneous Actions When multiple things were happening at the same time:
- Mientras yo estaba cocinando, mi hermana estaba estudiando (While I was cooking, my sister was studying)
- Juan estaba leyendo cuando llamaste (Juan was reading when you called)
- Interrupted Actions When one action interrupts another ongoing action:
- Estaba durmiendo cuando sonó el teléfono (I was sleeping when the phone rang)
- María estaba trabajando cuando se fue la luz (María was working when the power went out)
Common Irregular Present Participles
While most present participles follow regular patterns, some common verbs have irregular forms:
- Decir → diciendo (saying)
- Dormir → durmiendo (sleeping)
- Ir → yendo (going)
- Leer → leyendo (reading)
- Morir → muriendo (dying)
- Poder → pudiendo (being able)
- Reír → riendo (laughing)
- Servir → sirviendo (serving)
Time Expressions
Common time expressions that often accompany the Spanish past progressive:
- Mientras (while)
- Durante (during)
- Todo el día (all day)
- En ese momento (at that moment)
- Cuando (when)
- Al mismo tiempo (at the same time)
Remember that the Spanish past progressive is your go-to tense when you want to express continuous actions in the past, set scenes, or describe what was happening when something else occurred.