La interrogación en pasado de be
La oración interrogativa del pasado del verbo be se forma trasladando was o were delante del sujeto, y al final de la oración se pone el signo de interrogación.
Explicación
La oración interrogativa del pasado del verbo be se forma trasladando was o were delante del sujeto, y al final de la oración se pone el signo de interrogación. La respuesta se da de forma breve, poniendo detrás de Yes / No otra vez el sujeto y was / were, y la contracción solo se usa en la respuesta negativa.
A. Cómo formar la interrogativa — was / were delante
Basta con trasladar el was / were de la oración enunciativa delante del sujeto para obtener la interrogativa. El único principio es este orden: was/were + sujeto + resto + ?.
| Enunciativa | Interrogativa |
|---|---|
| She was at home. | Was she at home? |
| You were busy. | Were you busy? |
| They were in Seoul. | Were they in Seoul? |
| It was raining. | Was it raining? |
- Was she happy at the party? (¿Estaba ella contenta en la fiesta?)
- Were you late for work? (¿Llegaste tarde al trabajo?)
- Was the food good? (¿Estaba buena la comida?)
- Were they at school yesterday? (¿Estaban ellos en el colegio ayer?)
B. Respuestas breves con Yes / No
A una interrogativa en pasado del verbo be se responde brevemente poniendo detrás de Yes / No «sujeto + was / were» o «sujeto + wasn't / weren't». En la respuesta afirmativa no se usa la contracción; solo resulta natural en la negativa.
| Pregunta | Respuesta afirmativa | Respuesta negativa |
|---|---|---|
| Was she at home? | Yes, she was. | No, she wasn't. |
| Were you tired? | Yes, I was. | No, I wasn't. |
| Were they friends? | Yes, they were. | No, they weren't. |
| Was it cold? | Yes, it was. | No, it wasn't. |
- Was Anna at the meeting? — Yes, she was. (¿Estaba Anna en la reunión? Sí, estaba.)
- Were you sick last week? — No, I wasn't. (¿Estabas enfermo la semana pasada? No, no lo estaba.)
- Were they in Busan last summer? — Yes, they were. (¿Estaban ellos en Busan el verano pasado? Sí, estaban.)
C. Interrogativo + was / were — información concreta
Si detrás de un interrogativo como What / Where / How / Who se añade was / were, se obtiene una interrogativa en pasado que pide información concreta, y el orden queda fijado como «interrogativo + was / were + sujeto + ?».
| Interrogativo | Pregunta de ejemplo | Respuesta de ejemplo |
|---|---|---|
| What | What was your job? | I was a teacher. |
| Where | Where were you? | I was at home. |
| How | How was your trip? | It was great. |
| Who | Who was that man? | He was my uncle. |
| Why | Why were you late? | Because of the traffic. |
- Where were you last night? (¿Dónde estabas anoche?)
- How was your weekend? (¿Qué tal el fin de semana?)
- Who was at the door? (¿Quién estaba en la puerta?)
- Why were you so quiet? (¿Por qué estabas tan callado?)
Ideas clave
- 1La interrogativa en pasado del verbo be se completa con solo trasladar was / were delante del sujeto: ese orden es el único principio.
- 2En la respuesta hay que volver a poner sin falta el sujeto y was / were: recuérdalo. (X: Yes, was. / O: Yes, I was.)
- 3Lo natural en inglés es no contraer la respuesta afirmativa (Yes, I was) y contraer solo la negativa (No, I wasn't): es un uso fijo.
- 4Si detrás de un interrogativo (Where / How / Who / Why) se añade was / were, se obtiene una interrogativa que pide información concreta: aprende esta regla ampliada.
- 5How was ~? es la expresión típica para pedir una impresión o una valoración, «¿qué tal ~?», y se usa muchísimo en la conversación real: tenlo también en cuenta.