¿Alguna vez te has preguntado cómo expresar en inglés acciones que estaban ocurriendo en un momento específico del pasado?
Esa es precisamente la función del pasado progresivo.
Este tiempo verbal es esencial para contar historias, describir escenas o explicar situaciones que se desarrollaban en un momento anterior.
En este artículo, descubrirás qué es el pasado progresivo, cómo se forma y ejemplos que te ayudarán a dominarlo fácilmente.
¿Cuál es el pasado progresivo en inglés?
El pasado progresivo (Past Progressive Tense) se utiliza para describir acciones que estaban en proceso en un momento específico del pasado.
Normalmente enfatiza la duración o el hecho de que la acción estaba ocurriendo, pero no necesariamente se completó.
Ejemplos:
- I was reading a book when you called me. (Yo estaba leyendo un libro cuando me llamaste).
- They were playing football yesterday afternoon. (Ellos estaban jugando fútbol ayer por la tarde).
- She was cooking while I was studying. (Ella estaba cocinando mientras yo estaba estudiando).
Cómo se forma el pasado progresivo en inglés
La estructura básica es: Sujeto + was/were + verbo en -ing
- Se usa was con sujetos en singular (I, he, she, it).
- Se usa were con sujetos en plural (you, we, they).
Ejemplos:
- I was watching TV at 8 p.m. (Yo estaba viendo la tele a las 8 p.m.).
- We were studying for the test all night. (Nosotros estábamos estudiando toda la noche).
- The dog was barking loudly this morning. (El perro estaba ladrando fuerte esta mañana).
Negaciones en pasado progresivo
Para formar la negación en pasado progresivo, solo añadimos not después de was o were: Sujeto + was/were + not + verbo en -ing
Ejemplos:
- I was not (wasn’t) sleeping when you arrived. (Yo no estaba durmiendo cuando llegaste).
- They were not (weren’t) working yesterday. (Ellos no estaban trabajando ayer).
- She was not (wasn’t) listening to me. (Ella no me estaba escuchando).
Preguntas en pasado progresivo
Para hacer preguntas, se invierte el orden del verbo auxiliar: Was/Were + sujeto + verbo en -ing?
Ejemplos:
- Was he studying at the library yesterday? (¿Estaba él estudiando en la biblioteca ayer?)
- Were you watching TV when I called? (¿Estabas viendo la tele cuando te llamé?)
- Were they playing basketball in the park? (¿Estaban ellos jugando baloncesto en el parque?)
Ejemplos prácticos de oraciones en pasado progresivo
Aquí tienes una lista variada con formas afirmativas, negativas y preguntas:
Afirmativa | Negativa | Interrogativa |
| I was reading a novel last night. | I wasn’t reading a novel last night. | Was I reading a novel last night? |
| We were studying for the English exam. | We weren’t studying for the English exam. | Were we studying for the English exam? |
| They were playing chess all afternoon. | They weren’t playing chess all afternoon. | Were they playing chess all afternoon? |
| He was watching a movie. | He wasn’t watching a movie. | Was he watching a movie? |
| She was dancing at the party. | She wasn’t dancing at the party. | Was she dancing at the party? |
| I was sleeping at that time. | I wasn’t sleeping at that time. | Was I sleeping at that time? |
| You were listening to the teacher. | You weren’t listening to the teacher. | Were you listening to the teacher? |
| She was working yesterday. | She wasn’t working yesterday. | Was she working yesterday? |
| We were running in the park. | We weren’t running in the park. | Were we running in the park? |
| The kids were fighting. | The kids weren’t fighting. | Were the kids fighting? |
| I was speaking too fast. | I wasn’t speaking too fast. | Was I speaking too fast? |
| He was driving to work this morning. | He wasn’t driving to work this morning. | Was he driving to work this morning? |
| You were studying at the library. | You weren’t studying at the library. | Were you studying at the library? |
| They were talking about the project. | They weren’t talking about the project. | Were they talking about the project? |
| She was singing when you arrived. | She wasn’t singing when you arrived. | Was she singing when you arrived? |
Conclusión
El pasado progresivo es una herramienta esencial, ya que te permite hablar con más detalle sobre situaciones pasadas.
Ahora es el momento de ponerlo en práctica en tus conversaciones y ejercicios diarios.
No olvides visitar EZClass y el blog de EZClass para descubrir más temas interesantes y divertidos.
