esperábamos

esperábamos is a Spanish verb form. It is the first-person plural imperfect indicative of the verb esperar. The verb esperar has several common meanings in Spanish, including "to wait," "to hope," and "to expect." Therefore, "esperábamos" can translate to "we were waiting," "we were hoping," or "we were expecting," depending on the context of the sentence in which it appears.

The imperfect indicative tense in Spanish is used to describe ongoing actions, habitual actions, or states of being in the past. When used with "esperábamos," it indicates that the action of waiting, hoping, or expecting was in progress at some point in the past, or was a repeated or habitual action in the past. For instance, "Esperábamos el autobús" would mean "We were waiting for the bus." Another example, "Esperábamos que lloviera" translates to "We were hoping that it would rain." If the context was about a prediction, "Esperábamos una visita" could mean "We were expecting a visit."

The specific nuance of "esperábamos" is determined by the surrounding words and the overall narrative. It conveys a sense of past anticipation or duration without a definitive endpoint in the past. Understanding the different meanings of "esperar" and the function of the imperfect tense is key to correctly interpreting and using "esperábamos."