¿qué estabas haciendo?
In Spanish, ¿qué estabas haciendo? is used to say "what were you doing?"
This phrase is used to ask someone about their activities during a specific time in the past.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the interrogative pronoun qué (what), the imperfect indicative of estar (to be) and the gerund of hacer (to do/make).
Which one should you use?
While ¿qué estabas haciendo? focuses on an ongoing activity in the past, you should use ¿qué hiciste? to ask "what did you do?" when referring to a completed action.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In some Latin American countries, the variation ¿Qué estuviste haciendo? is used to ask "what were you doing?"
Did you know?
- In some Spanish-speaking regions, asking ¿qué estabas haciendo? with a specific tone can imply that the speaker suspects the other person was doing something wrong or forbidden.
- While ¿qué estabas haciendo? is common, a Spanish speaker might use the word anda in the phrase ¿qué andabas haciendo? to imply the person was wandering around or acting suspiciously.
- The Spanish word qué is a direct descendant of the Latin word quid, which is also the root of the English term 'quid pro quo'.
Examples in context
- ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando te llamé?What were you doing when I called you?
- No te oí, ¿qué estabas haciendo?I didn't hear you, what were you doing?
- Antes de llamarme, ¿qué estabas haciendo?Before calling me, what were you doing?
Example conversation
Daniel and Sofía are talking about a missed phone call.
- DanielSofía, no contestaste. ¿Qué estabas haciendo?Sofía, you didn't answer. What were you doing?
- SofíaEstaba cocinando la cena, Daniel.I was cooking dinner, Daniel.
- DanielAh, entiendo. ¿Estabas muy ocupada?Ah, I see. Were you very busy?
- SofíaSí, no escuché el teléfono.Yes, I didn't hear the phone.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries qué, CC BY-SA 4.0.
