Breakdown of Era bom que eles eliminassem a pobreza.
ser
to be
eles
they (m)
bom
good
que
that (conjunction)
Questions & Answers about Era bom que eles eliminassem a pobreza.
Why do we use eliminassem here instead of a normal past tense?
The phrase Era bom que (It would be good if) expresses an opinion or a hypothetical wish. Whenever a trigger phrase like this is in the past tense (era), the verb that follows must be in the Imperfect Subjunctive, which is eliminassem here.
How is the word eliminassem formed?
For regular verbs like eliminar, you start with the "they" form of the simple past: eliminaram. Drop the -ram at the end to get your stem (elimina-). Then, add the Imperfect Subjunctive ending for eles, which is -ssem, giving you eliminassem.
The translation says "It would be good", but doesn't era mean "It was"? Why not use the conditional tense?
You could use the conditional tense and say Seria bom que. However, in everyday Portuguese, it is extremely common to use the Imperfect Indicative (era) instead of the conditional to express "would be." It sounds softer and more natural in casual conversation.
Why is there an a before pobreza when the English translation just says "poverty"?
In Portuguese, abstract nouns like pobreza (poverty), saúde (health), or amor (love) almost always need a definite article (o or a) before them, whereas English usually leaves it out.