Question 1

Why does this sentence use vienen desplazando instead of han estado desplazando?

Accepted Answer

Using venir plus a gerund (like desplazando) emphasizes that an action started in the past and has been steadily accumulating or progressing up to the present. While han estado desplazando also means "have been shifting," vienen desplazando adds a stronger sense of gradual, ongoing progress over a long period of time.

Question 2

Does vienen literally mean "they come" here?

Accepted Answer

Not literally. While vienen on its own means "they come," when it forms this special structure with a gerund, it loses its literal meaning of physical travel. Instead, it works as a "helper" verb to express how the shifting has been building up over time.

Question 3

Why is the pronoun se used here?

Accepted Answer

The base verb desplazar means "to displace" or "to move" something else. Because the plates are moving themselves, we use the pronominal form desplazarse (to shift or move oneself). The se indicates that the tectonic plates are the ones undergoing the movement.

Question 4

Could the se go somewhere else in the sentence?

Accepted Answer

Yes! When you have a conjugated verb followed by a gerund, you can either put the pronoun before the conjugated verb (se vienen desplazando) or attach it directly to the end of the gerund (vienen desplazándose). If you attach it, remember to add an accent mark to keep the pronunciation exactly the same.

Las placas tectónicas se vienen desplazando lentamente.

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