Questions & Answers about Estos días ando un poco agobiado.
Why does estos días mean these days and not literally these days in the sense of specific calendar days?
In this sentence, estos días is an idiomatic time expression meaning lately, these days, or recently. It does not usually point to a precise set of days on a calendar. Instead, it gives a general time frame around now.
So Estos días ando un poco agobiado means something like:
- I’ve been a bit overwhelmed lately
- These days I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed
Why is ando used here instead of estoy?
Andar can be used in Spanish, especially in everyday speech, to talk about someone’s current state or how they have been feeling/doing recently. In this kind of sentence, ando gives a slightly more casual, temporary, lived-in feeling than estoy.
So:
- Estoy un poco agobiado = I’m a bit overwhelmed
- Ando un poco agobiado = I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed / I’m going around a bit overwhelmed lately
Using andar often suggests a state that has been going on over a period of time, not just a single moment.
Does andar here mean to walk?