Postupovaly

Postupovaly is a form of the Czech verb postupovat, meaning to proceed, advance, or make progress. It is the imperfective past tense form used with feminine plural subjects, corresponding to they (feminine) were advancing or they used to progress. In Czech, past tense forms agree in gender and number with the subject, so masculine plural would be postupovali, neuter singular or plural postupovalo, and feminine singular postupovala.

Usage and nuance: Postupovaly expresses ongoing or repeated action in the past rather than a single completed act. It is common in narrative and descriptive writing when describing gradual movement, development, or step-by-step progress. The imperfective aspect highlights continuity or habit rather than a one-off event.

Etymology and related forms: The verb postupovat derives from the noun postup (progress) with the infinitive suffix -ovat, forming an imperfective action verb. Related forms include present tense postupují (they proceed), past tense masculine postupovali, past tense neuter postupovalo, and past tense feminine singular postupovala. The noun postup means progress or procedure.

Examples: Dívky postupovaly po svahu pomalu. They (the girls) were progressing slowly down the slope. Třída postupovala v úkolu už několik týdnů. The class had been making progress on the task for several weeks.

Notes: As a verb form, postupovaly cannot stand alone as a noun; it is a verbal inflection that relies on subject agreement. Context determines whether it translates best as “were progressing” or “progressed.”