Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Estaba en la biblioteca y, de pronto, se me olvidó la contraseña. - I was in the library and, suddenly, I forgot the password.

Word

Estaba en la biblioteca y, de pronto, se me olvidó la contraseña.

Meaning

I was in the library and, suddenly, I forgot the password.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Spanish (Spain)

Lesson

Lesson 91

Breakdown of Estaba en la biblioteca y, de pronto, se me olvidó la contraseña.

estar

to be

and

Questions & Answers about Estaba en la biblioteca y, de pronto, se me olvidó la contraseña.

Why is it estaba and not estuve?

Estaba is the imperfect, which is often used to give background information or describe an ongoing situation in the past.

So in Estaba en la biblioteca, the speaker is setting the scene: they were in the library when something happened.

If you said Estuve en la biblioteca, it would sound more like I was in the library / I spent time in the library as a completed event, not just background.

A useful contrast is:

Estaba en la biblioteca cuando... = I was in the library when...
Estuve en la biblioteca toda la tarde = I was in the library all afternoon

What does de pronto mean?

De pronto means suddenly or all of a sudden.

It introduces the unexpected event:

Estaba en la biblioteca y, de pronto, se me olvidó la contraseña.

Other common Spanish expressions with a similar meaning are:

de repente
de golpe (more informal in some contexts)

Why is the sentence se me olvidó la contraseña instead of just olvidé la contraseña?