firmábamos

Firmábamos is the first-person plural imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb firmar, meaning to sign. It translates to “we signed” or “we were signing,” and is used to describe past actions that were ongoing, habitual, or not yet completed at a reference time in the past.

Morphology and usage notes: Firmábamos is formed from the infinitive firmar by removing the -ar and adding the imperfect endings -ábamos for nosotros/nosotras. The form is used in narrative and descriptive contexts when the speaker refers to a past activity carried out by a group including themselves. It can convey a sense of routine, repetition, or background action rather than a single completed event.

Contexts and nuance: In general, the imperfect indicates past actions without focusing on their completion. With firmar, this can describe regular signing of documents, ongoing signing during a period, or a background action in a larger sequence of events. It contrasts with the preterite form firmamos, which would emphasize a completed action with a definite end point.

Examples:

- Durante la reunión, firmábamos los contratos para renovar el servicio. (During the meeting, we were signing the contracts to renew the service.)

- Cada mes, firmábamos las actas de la junta. (Each month, we signed the board minutes.)

- Cuando llegó el notario, ya firmábamos los documentos. (When the notary arrived, we were already signing the documents.)

Etymology: firmar derives from Latin firmare, meaning to fix or seal, and is related to the root firm- meaning strong or fixed. See also related forms in other tenses: firmo, firmas, firma, firmamos, firmarán, etc.