I was going to

Question

Hello Could you tell me how to say "I was going to do" in Spanish? Should we say "Iba a hacer" or "Fue a hacer"? When reading an interview I bumped on the First form, but I don't know if the second is also correct. Thanks

Answer 1

Hello Matty

Very good question, lots of people struggle with this one:

You could /would say:

Iba a decirte = I was going to tell you!

You use the imperfect indicative to express this:

Iba a llamarte pero no tenía tiempo.

= I was going to call you (ie: by telephone) but I didn't have time.

I think that a similar way to say it is: Tenía la intención llamarte = I was intending to call you. / I had the intention to call you.

There may be a nuance in the meaning between these two in Spanish, but I honestly do not know what it is!

In your example you said: iba a hacer =I was going to do it but you need to add the appropriate article to it iba a hacerLO /LA

Fue a hacer is not the correct way to translate your sentence: I was going to!

The imperfect means I was doing, so with this verbal construction it can mean I was going to... Iba a + infinitive form of requiered verb. (The preterite or simple past means I did and the action has already been completed)

Additiomally, it is very important to mention that using the word hacer is only meaningful to the listener if you have already made it clear in tte context of your sentence what (doing) it refers to! The English often use general expressions like 'doing' out of context

eg, I was doing it! The Spanish are usually far more specific and would use a particular verb eg : Estaba lavando los platos = I was washing the dishes. I think that they would only say I was going to do it if they were sure that the listener understood what they meant by the word it!

I hope this helps

Corrijan mi español si es necesario, por favor

Answer 2

Actually, fue a hacer = went to do is correct, but it's used next to a noun or a clause.

1. Fue a hacer la comida.
2. Fue a hacer lo que dejó ayer.
3. Fue a hacer otras cosas..

This, of course, is different from the I was going to expression. As said before, this translates to iba a + infinitivo.

You are right of course, Oshnaj I only meant that it was not the correct way to translate the desired sentence: I was going to ;) - FELIZ77, Aug 16, 2016

It was my fault for not making that point clear ;) - FELIZ77, Aug 16, 2016