Estaba + gerund vs. Imperfecto
Hola a todos. Yo he estado pensando en un tópico especifico. Noté que un verbo en el aspecto imperfecto como "hablaba" puede ser traducir como: "I was talking", pero también uno podría decir "estaba hablando" (I was talking). Por eso, en que contextos los dos diferirían o ambos son intercambiable? Gracias por tus comentarios.
1 Answer
I have answered a similar question before, but long ago enough that I have no chance of finding it.
Basically in Spanish the use of the progressive is much more limited than in English and typically is used only to emphasize the immediacy of the action- you were in the middle of something.
I was in the middle of taking a shower when she walked in.
That might be a case to use the progressive.
But more often you will simply use the imperfect to set a background. Overuse of the progressive makes you sound foreign.
In a lot of cases you could use either, although the progressive can never substitute for repetitive actions (I was showering every day back then- progressive will not work in this case in Spanish).
This is my opinion as a learner.
