dominaban

Dominaban is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb dominar, meaning to dominate, control, or master. It is used with third-person plural subjects (ellos, ellas, ustedes) to describe ongoing or habitual actions or states in the past. The imperfect contrasts with the preterite (dominaron), which expresses a completed action, and with the present (dominamos, dominan), which denotes current actions or states.

Conjugation notes: dominar is a regular -ar verb in the imperfect. The forms are dominaba, dominabas, dominaba, dominábamos, dominabais, dominaban. Thus dominaban can indicate that a group or plural subject was in a position of dominance or repeatedly demonstrated mastery over something during a past period.

Usage and nuance: In narrative or descriptive writing, dominaban often sets the background or tone, signaling ongoing control, influence, or skill. It can refer to political or military dominance, economic power, or mastery in a field. The nuance depends on context: a long-term power dynamic, habitual behavior, or a characteristic state rather than a single, completed event.

Etymology and related forms: Dominar comes from Latin dominare, from dominus meaning master or lord. Related forms include domina (imperative or noun forms in different contexts) and dominaba as the imperfect third-person singular. Examples: “Los imperios dominaban vastas rutas comerciales,” “El equipo dominaba la liga durante aquella década.”

In summary, dominaban is a versatile past-tense form used to describe ongoing domination or mastery by multiple subjects in Spanish.