There are two ways to say There was/were in Spanish.
Haber in El Pretérito Imperfecto = Había
Haber in El Pretérito Indefinido = Hubo
Have a look at the following examples:
In all examples above the English translation is the same (there was/were), and they are all referring to past actions. This is why many learners find it hard to understand which one to use.
So, how do we know when to use HABÍA or HUBO?
Deciding when to use había or hubo will depend on whether the speaker:
- wants to emphasise the fact that the action had a beginning and an end (hubo), that is to say s/he sees that action as completed.
- doesn't see it as a completed action in the past, but as more of a descriptive function, describing what was happening (había) at that moment in the past.
For example:
Important note: notice how in the last two examples above the specific time tha action happened is specified: "el sábado", which would generally trigger El Pretérito Indefinido (hubo) , however we can also use El Pretérito Imperfecto (había) using the same specific time frame if what we want to convey is an action that "was happening", as an ongoing action within that specific timeframe.
See also:
- Using había to say there was / there were
- Using hubo = there was / there were (simple past)
- Using El Imperfecto vs El indefinido (general use)
Also: Irregulares en Indefinido/mismas terminaciones
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