Learn Spanish (Spain): Los obreros recibían un sueldo bajo en la fábrica. - The workers received a low salary in the factory.

The imperfect tense recibían is used because earning a salary wasn't just a one-time event. It describes an ongoing situation or routine in the past: month after month, their pay was low. If we used the preterite recibieron, it would sound like they received one specific, single payment on a particular day.

Could I add antes to this sentence to make the past context clearer?

Absolutely! You can add antes (before / in the past) at the beginning to say Antes los obreros recibían un sueldo bajo en la fábrica. This is a great way to emphasize how things used to be, especially if you want to contrast it with how things are now.

Does sueldo mean the same thing as salario?

Yes, they are very similar and both mean salary or wage. Sueldo is very common for a regular, fixed pay (like a monthly paycheck), while salario can refer to wages in general. You will hear both used interchangeably in everyday Spanish.

Why does bajo come after sueldo?

In Spanish, descriptive adjectives like bajo (low) usually go after the noun they describe. So, instead of saying a low salary, you say un sueldo bajo (literally, a salary low). This is a helpful rule to remember from earlier lessons!