Breakdown of La flor acababa de brotar; ¡cómo crece!
la flor
the flower
cómo
how
crecer
to grow
acabar de
to have just
Questions & Answers about La flor acababa de brotar; ¡cómo crece!
Why do we use cómo here to say "how it grows" instead of cuánto?
In exclamations, cómo + verb expresses surprise at the manner or intensity of an action ("the way it grows!"). If you used ¡cuánto crece!, you would be emphasizing the measurable amount or degree of growth ("how much it grows!"). Both are grammatically correct, but ¡cómo crece! focuses on the impressive nature of its growth.
Why is acabar in the imperfect tense (acababa) here?
The structure acabar de + infinitive means "to have just done something." In the present tense, acaba de brotar means "it has just sprouted." When you put it in the imperfect tense (acababa de brotar), it moves the perspective to the past, meaning "it had just sprouted." We use the imperfect here because it describes the background situation.
Is the verb brotar only used for plants?
Why are the exclamation marks only around the second half of the sentence?
In Spanish, you can place exclamation marks (and question marks) exactly where the exclamation or question begins, even if it is in the middle of a sentence. The first clause (La flor acababa de brotar) is a simple statement of fact, while the emotion is contained entirely in the second part (¡cómo crece!).