traía

Traía is the imperfect indicative form of the Spanish verb traer, meaning to bring. It is used to describe past actions or states that were habitual, ongoing, or setting a scene in the past. The forms in the imperfect tense are: yo traía, tú traías, él/ella/usted traía, nosotros traíamos, vosotros traíais, ellos/ellas/ustedes traían. Traer itself is irregular in the present tense (yo traigo, tú traes, él trae, etc.), but in the imperfect it follows regular endings.

Etymology and related forms: traer comes from the Latin verb trahere, meaning to draw or pull. In the imperfect, the word retains a simple -ía ending pattern, and the stress is marked with the acute accent on the í in all singular and plural forms as shown above. The imperfect contrasts with the preterite form trajo, which expresses a completed past action (“he/she brought” as a one-off event).

Usage notes: Traía conveys past actions that were repeated or ongoing rather than completed. It is commonly used to describe routines, habitual actions, or background information in narratives. For completed past actions, the preterite form trajo would be used instead, as in “Ayer trajo la carta” (Yesterday he brought the letter).

Common confusions: Traía should not be confused with traer in other moods or with traería, which is the conditional (would bring) or, in some contexts, the future-within-past sense. Example: “Si tuviera dinero, traería un regalo” uses traería to express a hypothetical intent.