describía

Describía is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb describir, meaning to describe. It is used to indicate a past action that was ongoing, habitual, or set the background in a narrative. Because the form is ambiguous between yo describía and él/ella/usted describía, context determines the subject.

Etymology and form: describir comes from Latin describere, combining de- (down) with scribere (to write). The imperfect endings for -ir verbs like describir are -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían. The accent on the í marks the position of stress in the imperfect forms.

Conjugation in the imperfect: yo describía; tú describías; él/ella/usted describía; nosotros/nosotras describíamos; vosotros/vosotras describíais; ellos/ellas/ustedes describían. The form is identical for the third person singular and the first person singular in spelling, distinguished only by context.

Usage and examples: In narrative, describía can set scenes or describe ongoing characteristics: “Yo describía la escena cuando llegó el coche.” “Ella describía a sus vecinos con detalle cada tarde.” It contrasts with the preterite describí, which marks a completed description. The imperfect also expresses description as a background or habitual action in the past.

Related forms: other tenses and moods of describir include describí (preterite), describiría (conditional), describiera o describiese (imperfect subjunctive), describiendo (gerund), y descrito (participle). Describía thus serves as a key tool for past description in Spanish narration.

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