Question 1

Why use the imperfect iba instead of the preterite fui for this past intention?

Accepted Answer

Using the imperfect of ir (iba) followed by a and an infinitive (comer) expresses what you 'were going to do'. It implies an unfulfilled intention, meaning you planned to eat the ice cream but likely didn't. If you used the preterite (fui a comer), it would mean you physically went somewhere to eat it and actually completed the action.

Question 2

Is the pronoun Yo mandatory here?

Accepted Answer

It is not mandatory, but it is very helpful. In the imperfect tense, the first-person (yo) and third-person (él, ella, usted) forms are identical. Because iba could also mean he, she, or you (formal) were going to eat it, adding yo removes any ambiguity about who the subject is.

Question 3

Why does desesperadamente have an a before the -mente ending?

Accepted Answer

When forming adverbs with the suffix -mente (the equivalent of the English '-ly'), Spanish uses the feminine singular form of the adjective as the base. Since the adjective is desesperado, it changes to the feminine desesperada before adding -mente.

Question 4

Could I place desesperadamente right after iba instead of at the end?

Accepted Answer

It is much more natural to keep it at the end of the phrase. Adverbs of manner in Spanish usually go after the specific verb they modify (in this case, comer) or at the end of the sentence. Putting it between the auxiliary structure and the infinitive (iba desesperadamente a comer) sounds very unnatural to native speakers.

Yo iba a comer el helado desesperadamente.

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