Spanish online reading and listening practice - level B1-B2
In part one of Un crimen perfecto we witnessed a robbery in a bar where Pablo, the waiter, was shot by the thief. Here's the second installment where the police investigate and think there's more to this than meets the eye.
This reading and listening exercise can help you practise El Pretérito Imperfecto vs. El Pretérito Indefinido, El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto, El Imperfecto Subjuntivo, and El Condicional Simple.
Exercise: Un crimen perfecto
Listen to the audio, then read the transcript. Click any phrase for the translation and links to related grammar lessons which you can add to your Kwiziq notebook to practise later.
Here are the study lists and vocabulary associated with this reader:
Text by Silvia Píriz and audio by Inma Sánchez
Jenk
Kwiziq community member
3 March 2019
2 replies
Hello. I wonder why we used the pluperfect here: "el ladrón había conseguido escapar durante la confusión que hubo en ese momento."
Is it correct to say " el ladrón conseguía escapar..." Thank you.
Inma
Kwiziq language super star
3 March 2019
3/03/19
Hola Jenk
We are using the pluperfect in this sentence to express an action that "had happened". With "el ladrón había conseguido escapar" we are placing that action "before" the very first sentence in the dictation: "La policía no tardó mucho en llegar al bar." So, there are two actions: the first one happening is "the thief running away" [pluperfect], and the second action happening is "the police arriving". This is what the pluperfect is generally used for: to express an action in the past that takes place before another past action.
Using the imperfect here wouldn't be good, as the nature of the meaning of "to manage to escape" will not trigger the imperfect which is generally descriptive. You could use the preterite though: "el ladrón consiguió escapar durante la confusión que hubo en ese momento". This way it gives the sense of a punctual and completed action.
Hope this helps.
Saludos
Inma
Jenk
Kwiziq community member
3 March 2019
3/03/19
Thank you so much for that quick explanation!