continuaban

Continuaban is the third-person plural imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb continuar. It translates to "they were continuing" or "they continued" in English, depending on context. The verb continuar derives from Latin continuare and is a regular -ar verb; in the imperfect tense it follows the standard endings for -ar verbs: -aba, -abas, -aba, -ábamos, -abais, -aban. Therefore continuaban corresponds to ellos/ellas/ustedes. The subject is usually implicit, but can be specified by context; the second-person plural imperfect form for vosotros is continuabais. In narrative and descriptive prose, continuaban is used to describe actions in progress in the past, to set background, or to indicate prolonged or repeated activity, as opposed to the preterite continuaron, which marks a completed action. Examples: "Los científicos continuaban sus experimentos" and "Ellos continuaban trabajando cuando llegó la lluvia." The English translation remains "they were continuing" or "they continued," depending on context. See also: continuar; imperfect tense; Spanish verb conjugation.