agregaba

Agregaba is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb agregar, meaning to add, attach, or append. It is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, or to set background in a narrative. As an imperfect form, it does not denote a completed action by itself but rather one that was happening over time or habitually.

Conjugation in the imperfect: yo agregaba, tú agregabas, él/ella/Ud. agregaba, nosotros agregábamos, vosotros agregabais, ellos/ellas/Uds. agregaban. This form is used across dialects to convey past addings without focusing on their end.

Etymology: agregar derives from the Latin adgregare, from ad- “toward” plus gregare “to gather,” via Old Spanish. The sense of bringing things together by adding or attaching is preserved in modern usage.

Usage notes: In addition to listing items or ingredients, agregar can mean to append information, attach documents, or incorporate elements into a collection or dataset. The imperfect form agregaba often appears in descriptive passages or explanations of procedures, for example describing steps in a recipe or the progression of a fixed task. It contrasts with the pretérito agregado forms like agregó or agregaron, which indicate a completed addition.

Examples:

- Yo agregaba sal a la sopa mientras probaba el sabor. (I was adding salt to the soup as I tasted it.)

- La lista agregaba nuevos nombres cada día. (The list kept adding new names.)

- En el informe, él agregaba datos de fuentes externas. (In the report, he was adding data from external sources.)

See also: agregar, conjugation of Spanish verbs, imperfect tenses.

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