Lección 53 · Etapa 4: Tiempos verbales y modales
“Was going to”
IntermedioForma y uso
was/were going to + verbo — un plan en el pasado, a menudo uno que no se cumplió
1.Forma
Was / were going to + verbo en forma base es going to llevado al pasado: algo que tenías pensado hacer o que se esperaba que pasara en aquel momento.
| I / he / she / it | you / we / they | |
|---|---|---|
| Afirmativa | I was going to call. | We were going to call. |
| Negativa | She wasn't going to say anything. | They weren't going to come. |
| Pregunta | Was he going to stay? | Were you going to tell me? |
| Respuesta corta | Yes, he was. / No, he wasn't. | Yes, we were. / No, they weren't. |
Al hablar rápido, going to suele sonar como gonna: I was gonna call you. Conviene reconocerlo, pero al escribir (exámenes, correos de trabajo) escribe going to completo.
2.Cuándo se usa
1. Un plan del pasado que no se cumplió, muy a menudo seguido de but
I was going to cook tonight, but I got home too late.
Iba a cocinar esta noche, pero llegué a casa demasiado tarde.
We were going to have a picnic, but it poured all afternoon.
Íbamos a hacer un pícnic, pero llovió a cántaros toda la tarde.
I wasn't going to buy anything, but the shoes were on sale.
No iba a comprar nada, pero los zapatos estaban de rebajas.
2. Una predicción hecha en el pasado: en aquel momento parecía seguro que iba a pasar (luego pudo pasar o no)
Everyone knew the final was going to be close.
Todos sabían que la final iba a estar reñida.
I thought the meeting was going to finish early, but it went on until seven.
Pensaba que la reunión iba a terminar pronto, pero duró hasta las siete.
3. A punto de hacer algo cuando te interrumpieron, a menudo con just
I was just going to text you when you called!
¡Justo te iba a escribir cuando llamaste!
Sorry, what were you going to say?
Perdona, ¿qué ibas a decir?
Un error frecuente es “I am going to call you, but I forgot.” Si el plan pertenece al pasado (but I forgot), going to también pasa al pasado: I was going to call you, but I forgot. Es igual que en español: “voy a llamarte” pasa a “iba a llamarte”.
3.Comparado con formas parecidas
| Frase | Significado |
|---|---|
| I'm going to call her. | un plan ahora, para el futuro |
| I was going to call her. | tenía pensado llamarla antes (normalmente no lo hice) |
| I called her. | la llamé de verdad |
| I was calling her when… | estaba llamándola cuando… |
| I would have called her, but… | la habría llamado si algo no me lo hubiera impedido |
| She said she would call. | una promesa o predicción vista desde el pasado |
Was going to recalca un plan o intención que ya existía; would después de said / promised recalca una promesa o predicción. A menudo valen los dos: He said he was going to fix it. / He said he would fix it.
4.Errores comunes
I was go to call you, but I forgot.I was going to call you, but I forgot.
La forma completa es was going to + verbo.
We are going to visit Hue last summer, but the flights were too expensive.We were going to visit Hue last summer, but the flights were too expensive.
Un plan en el pasado → were, no are.
She was going to studied abroad.She was going to study abroad.
Después de going to, va el verbo en forma base.
I was going to finishing my essay, but I fell asleep.I was going to finish my essay, but I fell asleep.
Aquí no va -ing después de to.
My friends was going to come.My friends were going to come.
Sujeto en plural → were.
Ejemplos
- I was going to call you last night, but my phone died.
- We were going to eat out, but it rained, so we cooked at home.
- Sorry, I was going to tell you about the party, but I forgot.
- I was going to buy a new laptop, but then I saw the price.
