past perfect progressive in Spanish

Past Perfect Progressive Tense in Spanish

Past Perfect Progressive tense

How do you use Past Perfect Progressive?

It’s time to learn how to conjugate the Past Perfect Progressive tense in Spanish. Study Spanish verb conjugations with online lessons. Read about the Spanish grammar rules.


ar, er, ir

The Past Perfect Progressive is used to talk about an action that began in the past, continued for a while and then ended in the past.

 

Past Perfect Progressive formula:

“had” + “Been “ + Present Participle (ending -ing)

 

Verbs that End in -ar

Subject-ar Endings

Yo (I)-había estado +…ando

 (You)(Informal)-habías estado + …ando

Usted (You)(Formal)-había estado + …ando

Él/Ella(He/She)-había estado + …ando

Nosotros(as)(We)-habíamos estado + …ando

Vosotros(as)(You)(Informal)-habíais estado + …ando

Ustedes(You)(Formal)-habían estado + …ando

Ellos(as)(They)-habían estado + …ando

 

SubjecthablarEnglish translation

Yo (I)Había estado hablandoI had been speaking

 (You)(Informal)Habías estado hablandoYou had been speaking

Usted (You)(Formal)Había estado hablandoYou had been speaking

Él/Ella(He/She)Había estado hablandoHe/She had been speaking

Nosotros(as)(We)Habíamos estado hablandoWe had been speaking

Vosotros(as)(You)(Informal)Habíais estado hablandoYou had been speaking

Ustedes(You)(Formal)Habían estado hablandoYou had been speaking

Ellos(as)(They)Habían estado hablandoThey had been speaking

 

Verbs that End in -er

Subject-er Endings

Yo (I)-había estado +…iendo

 (You)(Informal)-habías estado + … iendo

Usted (You)(Formal)-había estado + … iendo

Él/Ella(He/She)-había estado + … iendo

Nosotros(as)(We)-habíamos estado +… iendo

Vosotros(as)(You)(Informal)-habíais estado + … iendo

Ustedes(You)(Formal)-habían estado + … iendo

Ellos(as)(They)-habían estado + … iendo

 

SubjectcomerEnglish translation

Yo (I)Había estado  comiendoI had been eating

 (You)(Informal)Habías estado comiendoYou had been eating

Usted (You)(Formal)Había estado comiendoYou had been eating

Él/Ella(He/She)Había estado comiendoHe/She had been eating

Nosotros(as)(We)Habíamos estado comiendoWe had been eating

Vosotros(as)(You)(Informal)Habíais estado comiendoYou had been eating

Ustedes(You)(Formal)Habían estado comiendoYou had been eating

Ellos(as)(They)Habían estado comiendoThey had been eating

 

Verbs that End in –ir

Subject-ir Endings

Yo (I)-había estado +…iendo

 (You)(Informal)-habías estado + … iendo

Usted (You)(Formal)-había estado + … iendo

Él/Ella(He/She)-había estado + … iendo

Nosotros(as)(We)-habíamos estado +… iendo

Vosotros(as)(You)(Informal)-habíais estado + … iendo

Ustedes(You)(Formal)-habían estado + … iendo

Ellos(as)(They)-habían estado + … iendo

 

 

SubjectvivirEnglish translation

Yo (I)Había estado  viviendoI had been living

 (You)(Informal)Habías estado viviendoYou had been living

Usted (You)(Formal)Había estado viviendoYou had been living

Él/Ella(He/She)Había estado viviendoHe/She had been living

Nosotros(as)(We)Habíamos estado viviendoWe had been living

Vosotros(as)(You)(Informal)Habíais estado viviendoYou had been living

Ustedes(You)(Formal)Habían estado viviendoYou had been living

Ellos(as)(They)Habían estado viviendoThey had been living

 

Past Perfect Progressive – Examples

Now, let’s look at some e.g.s with the Past Perfect Progressive:

1- No estaba durmiendo mucho. – I hadn’t been sleeping much.

2- No nos habíamos hablado desde que rompimos. – We hadn’t been talking since we broke up.

3- Llevaba un mes viviendo en Londres cuando la conocí. – I had been living in London for one month when I met her.

Other option: Había estado viviendo en Londres cuando lo conocí

4- Llevabas dos horas corriendo cuando te desmayaste. – You had been running for two hours when you fainted.

Other option: Habías estado corriendo dos horas cuando te desmayaste

5- Llevaba cinco horas trabajando. – I’d been working for five hours.

Other option: Había estado trabajando por cinco horas

6- Llevabas todo el dia dormida. -You’d been sleeping all day.

Other option: Había estado durmiendo todo el dia

7- Llevaba horas roncando. – He’d been snoring for hours.

Other option: Había estado roncando por horas

8- Llevaba corriendo desde las siete de la mañana. – She’d been running since seven in the morning.

Other option: Había estado corriendo desde las siete de la mañana

9- Llevaba una hora lloviendo en Puebla. – It’d been raining for an hour in Puebla.

Other option: Había estado lloviendo por una hora en Puebla

10- Últimamente, llevábamos hablando mucho por teléfono. – Lately, we’d been talking on the phone a lot.

Other option: Últimamente, nosotros habíamos estado hablando mucho  por teléfono

11- Llevaban dos horas jugando fútbol. – They’d been playing soccer for two hours.

Other option:  Habían estado jugando fútbol por dos horas

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