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El abismo que vimos ayer fue mortal.

El abismo que vimos ayer fue mortal.
The abyss that we saw yesterday was deadly.
From Lesson 279:Clausal comparatives with adjectives (más... de lo que)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about El abismo que vimos ayer fue mortal.

Why is fue used here instead of era to describe the abyss?
Normally, background physical descriptions in the past use the imperfect tense (era). However, using the preterite (fue) frames the abyss, or rather your experience of encountering it, as a single, completed event that happened ayer (yesterday). It's less about painting a background picture and more like saying 'Our encounter with the abyss yesterday was deadly.'
Can mortal mean something other than literally 'causing death' here?
Yes! In many parts of Latin America, mortal is used colloquially to mean 'killer,' 'awesome,' or 'intense.' Depending on the context, this sentence could mean the abyss was incredibly impressive, terrifying, or exhausting to hike, rather than literally fatal.
Why don't we need a personal 'a' after vimos?
The personal 'a' is only required when the direct object of a verb is a specific person or a beloved pet. Since el abismo is an inanimate object (a geographic feature), it acts as the direct object of vimos without needing an 'a'.
Why is que used for 'that' instead of eso?
In this sentence, que is a relative pronoun linking the noun (el abismo) to the clause that describes it (vimos ayer). You only use eso when you need a demonstrative pronoun to point to an abstract idea or a physical thing, like saying 'I saw that' (Yo vi eso).

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