Sometimes, when we talk about past actions we say what we have just done, a very recent action. For this, "acabar de..." is used in Spanish.
Learn how to say "to have just done something" in Spanish
In Spanish we use this verbal structure to express "To have just done [something]".
Acabar (conjugated) de + Infinitivo
Have a look and listen to the following examples in different tenses:
Notice how the preposition de always follows acabar. In Spanish, unlike in English, we do not use a participle (-ed form) but rather an infinitive after de.
Acabo de llegar.
Acabo de llegado.
I have just arrived.
Generally with this construction we use either El Presente or El Pretérito Imperfecto as you can see in the examples above.
- For "have just done something" use El Presente
- For "had just done something" use El Pretérito Imperfecto
See also Perífrasis verbal.
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