Definition of Past Continuous

Speaking is a complex act. We do it spontaneously and without reflection, because in daily life the important thing is the communication. However, it is worth reflecting on language. And in this sense, verbs are keywords, since it is impossible to articulate a message without them.

The noun of the verb is mentioned in the infinitive (cry, read or to write ), having also two other non-personal forms of the verb: the participle and the gerund (loved and loving, respectively). These three ways are crucial in the use of the training of verbal structures. It is what happens with the continuous past. Using the gerund is a way of underlining or emphasizing the idea that the action is in progress. This means that it is not a completed action. If so, you should use the past simple (I worked).

Although the continuous forms can also be applied to the present or the future (it is eating or I will be running), if we intend to mention a past in which actions occur with a

temporality determined it is necessary to resort to the past continuous. It is a form that has its equivalent in other languages, such as English (past continiuous).

The past continuous (I was working) has two combined verbs: the first is the estar verb that acts as an auxiliary verb and the second is the main verb of the action it describes. In the previous sentence working is the most relevant verb, but combined with the verb being in the past tense it acquires its full meaning. The continuous past expresses an action framed in the past and, at the same time, that the action was taking place at the moment to which it alludes.

Verbs manifest their expressive capacity through their variants and conjugations. Each verb form has a specific meaning and its correct use is made when its authenticity is respected. purpose. Language is subject to change and new technologies are simplifying it. Wealth and complexity of verbs is also affected by this phenomenon. Proof of this is the increasingly infrequent use of the subjunctive or conditional, using simpler verb forms instead.

Another aspect that hinders the correct use of verbs is the great influence of the English language. Being an international and widely spread language, its influence is also appreciated in the use of verbs, usually because an incorrect translation is made, since Spanish is spoken with the influence of the verbal structure of English. A curious example of this phenomenon is Spanglish, the fusion of Spanish and English in a form of communication with an unknown direction.

Themes in Past Continuous