protegía

Protegía is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb proteger, which means to protect. It describes ongoing or repeated protection in the past and is used to set background actions or states. The forms for this tense are: yo protegía, tú protegías, él protegía, nosotros protegíamos, vosotros protegíais, ellos protegían. Each form carries an accent on the í to indicate the correct stress.

Usage in the imperfect tense expresses actions or conditions in the past without specifying their beginning or end. It often implies habitual protection or background circumstances. Examples: "Él protegía a sus hermanos de las burlas" and "Yo protegía mis cuadernos de la lluvia cuando iba a la escuela."

Origin and related forms: proteger derives from Latin protegere, formed from pro- (forward) and tegere (to cover). The imperfect stem is proteg-, and the endings -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían are added. The form can appear in both narrative and descriptive contexts.

Translations and usage notes: In English, protegía corresponds to "was protecting" or "protected" depending on context. It should not be confused with other tenses of proteger such as protegió (preterite). The imperfect provides background information about protection in the past rather than a single completed action.