La regla principal
Did lleva el pasado, así que el verbo principal va en forma base: I didn't go, Did you go?, Where did you go? Was y were no usan did: I wasn't, Were you...?
Las formas con did
| Tipo de frase | Esquema | Ejemplo |
|---|---|---|
| Afirmativa | sujeto + verbo en pasado | She went home. |
| Negativa | sujeto + didn't + verbo base | She didn't go home. |
| Pregunta de sí o no | Did + sujeto + verbo base? | Did she go home? |
| Pregunta con palabra interrogativa | palabra interrogativa + did + sujeto + verbo base? | Where did she go? |
En español el pasado va dentro del verbo («fue», «no fue») y la negación se pone delante: «No fui». En inglés no se dice *I no went* ni *I not went*: la negación va después de un auxiliar, didn't. Tampoco existe la pregunta «a secas» con solo la entonación o la inversión del verbo principal: no se dice *You went there?* ni *Where went you?*, sino Did you go there? y Where did you go? Como did ya marca el pasado, el verbo vuelve a la forma base: no *I didn't went*, sino I didn't go.
Ejemplos
- I didn't watch TV last night. Anoche no vi la tele.
- She didn't call me yesterday. Ayer no me llamó.
- We didn't have breakfast this morning. Esta mañana no desayunamos.
- Did you sleep well? ¿Dormiste bien?
- Did your parents visit you in May? ¿Te visitaron tus padres en mayo?
- Where did you buy this bag? ¿Dónde compraste este bolso?
- What time did the film start? ¿A qué hora empezó la película?
- Why did he leave early? ¿Por qué se fue temprano?
Respuestas cortas
A una pregunta con Did se responde con did o didn't, no con el verbo principal. El sujeto pasa a ser un pronombre: Did your parents call? - Yes, they did. / No, they didn't. En español repetimos el verbo («Sí, fui»), pero en inglés no se dice *Yes, I went* ni *No, I not*: se dice Yes, I did y No, I didn't. A las preguntas con Where, What o Why se responde con una frase completa: I went to Lima.
Respuesta corta
Con Did you...? responde con dos palabras: Yes, I did. / No, I didn't. Suena natural, mientras que un «Yes» o un «No» solos pueden sonar secos. No repitas went, saw o bought en la respuesta corta.
Was y were: sin did
| Sujeto | Negativa | Pregunta | Respuesta corta |
|---|---|---|---|
| I, he, she, it | I wasn't tired. | Was she at home? | Yes, she was. / No, she wasn't. |
| you, we, they | They weren't at work. | Were you at school? | Yes, I was. / No, they weren't. |
El verbo to be en pasado forma por sí solo la negación (wasn't, weren't) y la pregunta (Was he...? Were they...?), como en presente. Aquí did sobra. Al traducir «¿Estabas cansado?» o «¿Estuviste en casa?» es fácil añadir did por costumbre y escribir *Did you were tired?*. Lo correcto es Were you tired? Con you siempre se usa were, incluso para una sola persona. Las preguntas con palabra interrogativa funcionan igual: Where were you yesterday? How was the film?
Errores típicos
I no went to school.I didn't go to school. La negación necesita didn't, y el verbo va en forma base.I didn't went to school.I didn't go to school. Después de didn't el verbo no lleva pasado.You went to the party?Did you go to the party? La pregunta necesita Did, no basta la entonación.Where went you yesterday?Where did you go yesterday? Palabra interrogativa, did, sujeto y verbo base.Did you went there?Did you go there? El pasado ya está en did.Did you were at home?Were you at home? Con was y were no se usa did.Yes, I went.Yes, I did. En la respuesta corta va did, no el verbo principal.I didn't see nothing.I didn't see anything. En inglés basta una sola negación.
Preguntas y respuestas
¿Cómo se hace la negación en past simple?
Pon didn't delante del verbo en forma base: I didn't buy milk. Didn't es igual para todas las personas. La forma completa did not también es correcta y suena más formal.
¿Por qué no se dice Did you went?
Porque did ya expresa el pasado. El verbo principal va en forma base: Did you go?, no *Did you went?*.
¿Cómo se responde a una pregunta con Did?
Con una respuesta corta con did o didn't: Did you like it? - Yes, I did. / No, I didn't. No se repite el verbo principal.
¿Cómo se hacen las preguntas con where, what o why en pasado?
El orden es: palabra interrogativa, did, sujeto y verbo base. Por ejemplo, What did you eat? When did they arrive?
¿Se usa did con was y were?
No. La negación y la pregunta con was / were se forman sin did: I wasn't there, Were you there? La forma *Did you were...?* es un error.
¿Was o were con you?
Con you siempre were, también si hablas con una sola persona: Were you at home? Con I, he, she e it se usa was.