attendeva

Attendeva is the imperfect indicative third-person singular form of the Italian verb attendere, meaning to wait for or to attend to. It expresses a past action that was ongoing, habitual, or simultaneous with another past event. In narrative contexts, it is often used to set a scene or describe background actions, as in: Durante la riunione, lei attendeva una risposta.

Etymology and meaning: The Italian verb attendere derives from the Latin attendere, formed from ad- “toward” and tendere “to stretch.” Over time the sense shifted toward directing attention or awaiting someone or something, which is the modern usage in Italian.

Conjugation and usage: The imperfect forms of attendere are io attendevo, tu attendevi, lui/lei attendeva, noi attendevamo, voi attendevate, loro attendevano. Attendeva specifically appears as the third-person singular form. It is not a noun; rather, it is a verb form used to describe past ongoing or repeated actions. For example: L'interruzione arrivò mentre lei attendeva una risposta.

Overview: Attendeva is a standard, widely used verb form in Italian grammar, representative of the imperfect tense for attendere. It conveys temporally extended past activity and is appropriate in both literary and everyday language. See also attendere, imperfect tense, Italian verbs.