hablábais

Hablabais is the second-person plural imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb hablar, used with the pronoun vosotros in most of Spain. It expresses actions in the past that were ongoing, habitual, or serving as background in narration, roughly translating to “you all were speaking” or “you all used to speak.”

The form is created from the verb stem habl- plus the imperfect ending for -ar verbs designated for vosotros, -abais, yielding hablabais. The corresponding forms for other subjects are hablo, hablaba, hablabas, hablábamos, hablaban, etc. In Latin American Spanish, the vosotros forms are generally not used, and the imperfect is expressed with ustedes: hablaban.

Uso: Hablabais is used in narrative style, dialogue in past stories, and descriptions of past habits, especially in Spain. It contrasts with the preterite you all spoke, which is hablasteis and presents a completed action.

Ejemplos: “Cuando éramos jóvenes, vosotros hablabais mucho durante la clase.” “Anoche, cuando llegasteis, ya habitabais de las vacaciones.” (The second example uses hablabais to indicate ongoing discussion at the time of arrivals.)

Etymology: The verb hablar comes from Latin fabulari, through the evolution of Spanish, with the imperfect vosotros form developing in line with other -ar verbs.

Notas: The vosotros forms are characteristic of Spain and some regions; outside Spain, ustedes is typically used and the corresponding imperfect is hablaban. Hablabais thus reflects regional variation in direct address and past-tense spelling and pronunciation.