Questions & Answers about A veces dudo de mi progreso en español.
What does a veces literally mean, and how is it different from other frequency expressions like siempre or a menudo?
A veces literally means “at times” and is best translated as “sometimes”.
Some related expressions:
- siempre = always
- casi siempre = almost always
- a menudo / frecuentemente = often, frequently
- rara vez / casi nunca = rarely, almost never
- nunca = never
A veces suggests that something happens on some occasions, but not regularly or frequently. It’s neutral and very common in everyday speech.
Why is it dudo de mi progreso and not just dudo mi progreso?
In Spanish, the usual pattern is dudar de + noun/pronoun, not dudar + noun.
- dudar de algo/alguien = to have doubts about something/someone
- Dudo de mi progreso. = I doubt / I have doubts about my progress.
- Dudo de él. = I doubt him / I don’t fully trust him.
Using dudar directly with a noun object (like dudo mi progreso) is not natural in modern everyday Spanish. Native speakers almost always include de when the next word is a noun or pronoun.
So:
- ✔ Dudo de mi progreso.
- ✘ Dudo mi progreso. (sounds wrong)