B1 · Unit 8 · 41 words, 3 texts with translation
Tell what went wrong on a road trip
Tell the story of a trip where something broke down or didn't go as planned: a breakdown, a flat tire, animals on the road, getting help and a happy ending.
Texts in this unit
Grammar in this unit
Estaba + gerund + cuando: an action that got interrupted
You already know estoy comiendo — I'm eating right now (A2, unit 1). And in a story about the past, the background goes in the imperfect (hacía) and the event in the preterite (hice) (A2, unit 16).
Now here's the main pattern of any road story: "I was in the middle of something, and then…". To show that an action was in progress, put estar in the imperfect and add a gerund. This is the past progressive, like English "was / were + -ing":
estaba, estabas, estaba, estábamos, estabais, estaban + hablando / comiendo / saliendo
Then comes cuando (when) and the event that cut in, in the preterite:
- Estaba conduciendo cuando sonó el móvil. — I was driving when my phone rang.
- Estábamos cenando cuando se fue la luz. — We were having dinner when the power went out.
- ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando te llamé? — What were you doing when I called you?
If it all happened today, the event is usually in the present perfect (he hecho): Estaba duchándome cuando has llamado. — I was in the shower when you called.
How is estaba conduciendo different from plain conducía? The meaning is the same, but estaba + gerund stresses "right at that moment, in progress". State verbs don't take this form: tenía miedo (I was afraid), quería salir (I wanted to go out), not ✗ estaba teniendo miedo. English works the same way: "I was afraid", not "I was being afraid".
"I was going to, but…": iba a + verb. You know voy a salir — I'm going to go out (A1, unit 13). Put ir in the imperfect (iba, ibas, iba, íbamos, ibais, iban) and you get "was going to":
- Iba a salir cuando empezó a llover. — I was going to go out when it started to rain.
- Íbamos a llamarte, pero era muy tarde. — We were going to call you, but it was very late.
Common mistakes. The interrupted action is in the imperfect: estaba conduciendo cuando…, not ✗ estuve conduciendo cuando… The event after cuando is in the preterite: cuando sonó, not ✗ cuando sonaba. And "was going to" is iba a salir: fui a means "I went (somewhere)".
Estar a punto de: "about to" and "almost"
Sometimes it matters that the event was only a second away: the train is about to leave, I almost fell, we were just about to go out. For this, Spanish has the phrase estar a punto de + infinitive (word for word "to be at the point of"). Only estar changes, and its tense changes the meaning.
| Tense of estar | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| present: estoy a punto de | about to do it | El tren está a punto de salir. — The train is about to leave. |
| imperfect: estaba a punto de | was just about to do it, and then… | Estaba a punto de llamarte cuando llegaste. — I was just about to call you when you arrived. |
| preterite: estuve a punto de | almost did it, but it didn't happen | Estuve a punto de caerme. — I almost fell. |
More examples:
- Estamos a punto de llegar: cinco minutos. — We're about to arrive: five minutes.
- Estuvimos a punto de perder el avión. — We almost missed the plane.
How it's different from iba a. Iba a salir — I was going to go out: there was a plan. Estaba a punto de salir — I was about to go out: I was already at the door.
Common mistakes. English "I almost fell" has no negative, and neither does Spanish: estuve a punto de caerme. If you add no, the meaning flips. And don't drop de: a punto de salir, not ✗ a punto salir.
Primero, luego, al final: telling a story in order
When you tell someone what happened (a friend, a mechanic or your insurance company), they need to know what came first and what came later. You've already seen these words one by one; now let's put them in a chain.
| Step | Words |
|---|---|
| start | primero — first |
| middle | luego, después — then, later; entonces — then, and just then; más tarde — later |
| end | al final — in the end; por fin — finally, at last; finalmente — finally, eventually |
- Primero pinchamos, luego nos perdimos y al final llegamos de noche. — First we got a flat tire, then we got lost, and in the end we arrived at night.
- Primero llamé al seguro y después a mi jefa. — First I called the insurance company, and then my boss.
Three "endings" that aren't the same.
al final— how it all ended, often not the way you expected: Íbamos a ir a la playa, pero al final nos quedamos en casa. — We were going to go to the beach, but in the end we stayed home.por fin— "finally!" after a long wait: Por fin llegó la grúa. — The tow truck finally came.finalmente— a calm "finally, in the end", more common in written stories.
Common mistakes. "In the end" is al final, not ✗ en el fin. And don't use finalmente when you're glad something has finally happened: ¡Por fin es viernes! — Finally, it's Friday!
Words in this unit
el camión — truck
Delante de nosotros va un camión muy lento. — A very slow truck is driving in front of us.
el animal — animal
En la granja hay muchos animales. — There are a lot of animals on the farm.
la boda — wedding
Este sábado voy a una boda. — I'm going to a wedding this Saturday.
el humo — smoke
Sale humo del motor. — Smoke is coming out of the engine.
la curva — curve, bend (in a road)
Esta carretera tiene muchas curvas. — This road has a lot of curves.
el túnel — tunnel
El túnel es largo y oscuro. — The tunnel is long and dark.
chocar — to crash, to collide
Casi chocamos con un camión. — We almost crashed into a truck.
el choque — crash, collision
Hay mucho tráfico por un choque en la autopista. — There's a lot of traffic because of a crash on the highway.
finalmente — finally, in the end
Finalmente llega la grúa. — Finally, the tow truck arrives.
por desgracia — unfortunately
Por desgracia, no llegamos a tiempo. — Unfortunately, we didn't make it in time.
afortunadamente — fortunately, luckily
Afortunadamente, nadie está herido. — Fortunately, no one is hurt.
de golpe — suddenly, all of a sudden
De golpe, el coche se para. — Suddenly, the car stops.
a lo lejos — in the distance
A lo lejos veo una gasolinera. — I see a gas station in the distance.
estar a punto de — to be about to (do something), to almost (do something)
Estoy a punto de salir. — I'm about to leave.
asustarse — to get scared
Me asusto por cualquier ruido. — I get scared by any noise.
empujar — to push
Ayúdame a empujar el coche. — Help me push the car.
herido — injured, hurt
Por suerte, no hay heridos. — Luckily, there are no injured people.
la anécdota — story, anecdote
Te cuento una anécdota del viaje. — I'll tell you a story from the trip.
el mecánico — mechanic
Mi mecánico trabaja cerca de mi casa. — My mechanic works near my house.
la grúa — tow truck
Llamamos a la grúa. — We call the tow truck.
el pinchazo — flat tire, puncture
Tenemos un pinchazo. — We have a flat tire.
pinchar — to get a flat tire, to puncture
Pinchamos una rueda en la autopista. — We get a flat tire on the highway.
rueda de repuesto — spare tire
Siempre llevo una rueda de repuesto. — I always carry a spare tire.
averiarse — to break down
El coche se avería lejos de la ciudad. — The car breaks down far from the city.
quedarse sin gasolina — to run out of gas
Me quedo sin gasolina en la autopista. — I run out of gas on the highway.
el desvío — detour, turnoff
Hay un desvío por obras. — There's a detour because of roadwork.
despistarse — to get distracted
Me despisto un segundo y pierdo la salida. — I get distracted for a second and miss the exit.
detenerse — to stop
El camión se detiene delante de nosotros. — The truck stops in front of us.
la vaca — cow
En la granja hay diez vacas. — There are ten cows on the farm.
la oveja — sheep
Las ovejas van detrás del pastor. — The sheep walk behind the shepherd.
el rebaño — flock, herd
Un rebaño de ovejas cruza la carretera. — A flock of sheep crosses the road.
el pastor — shepherd
El pastor tiene tres perros. — The shepherd has three dogs.
la granja — farm
Mis tíos tienen una granja cerca de Segovia. — My aunt and uncle have a farm near Segovia.
el camionero — truck driver
El camionero nos ayuda con la rueda. — The truck driver helps us with the tire.
el banquete — banquet, reception
El banquete de la boda es en un hotel. — The wedding banquet is at a hotel.
el anochecer — nightfall, dusk
Al anochecer hace frío en el campo. — At nightfall it's cold in the countryside.
remolcar — to tow
La grúa remolca nuestro coche hasta el taller. — The tow truck tows our car to the repair shop.
asistencia en carretera — roadside assistance
Llamamos a la asistencia en carretera. — We call roadside assistance.
el arcén — shoulder (of a road)
Paramos en el arcén. — We stop on the shoulder.
el chaleco — vest
Siempre llevo un chaleco en el coche. — I always keep a vest in the car.
el burro — donkey
En la granja hay un burro muy simpático. — There's a very friendly donkey on the farm.
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