Past Actions

Question

How do I express an action in the past that is no longer going on?

Is this correct?

Hace cinco anos que vivio en Mexico

Welcome to the forum. The accents Bosque mentions are at the bottom of the answer,/question box - Mardle, Sep 10, 2017

welcome to the forum, :) - 006595c6, Sep 10, 2017

Answer 1

Welcome to the forum

http://studyspanish.com/grammar/lessons/hacerago

When the verb is in the preterite tense, a different meaning is conveyed:

Hace + time + que + preterite tense form of the verb

Hace un año que estudié español. I studied Spanish one year ago.

There is another way to convey the same idea:

Preterite tense form of the verb + hace + time Estudié español hace un año. I studied Spanish one year ago.

So

Hace cinco años que vivió en México

Would mean

Five years ago he/she/usted lived in Mexico.

It is important to use the accents when needed.

Answer 2

Hi Mary, welcome to the forum

Maybe you wanted to say:

I lived in Mexico for 5 years?

Viví en México durante 5 años.

thanks. - Mary6374, Sep 11, 2017