Learn Spanish (Latin America): El chico me intimidó y yo no sabía qué responder. - The boy intimidated me and I didn't know what to answer.

El chico me intimidó y yo no sabía qué responder.

The boy intimidated me and I didn't know what to answer.

Breakdown of El chico me intimidó y yo no sabía qué responder.

Questions & Answers about El chico me intimidó y yo no sabía qué responder.

Why does the indirect question use the infinitive responder instead of a conjugated verb?

When the subject of the main clause and the indirect question are the same, Spanish prefers the infinitive. Since you are the one who didn't know and you are also the one who would answer, you use qué responder. If the subjects were different, for example if you didn't know what the boy would answer, you would need a conjugated verb like qué respondería.

Why does qué have an accent mark if there are no question marks?

Interrogative words always keep their accent marks in indirect questions. Even though it is embedded in a statement, the word qué still functions as a question word asking what to answer.

Why do we use the preterite for intimidó but the imperfect for sabía?

The preterite intimidó is used because the intimidation is viewed as a specific event that triggered your reaction. The imperfect sabía is used because not knowing was your ongoing mental state at that moment, rather than an action with a definite beginning and end.

Is the pronoun yo strictly necessary before no sabía?

It is not strictly necessary, but it is very common here for clarity. The imperfect form sabía can mean I knew, he knew, she knew, or you knew. Adding yo removes ambiguity and creates a natural contrast between the boy and yourself.