Breakdown of La aerolínea no nos había informado del retraso.
no
no / not
del
of the / from the / about the (topic)
nos
to us / ourselves / us (direct object)
haber
to have (auxiliary)
el retraso
the delay
la aerolínea
the airline
informar
to inform
Questions & Answers about La aerolínea no nos había informado del retraso.
Why do we use había informado here instead of the simple past tense informó?
Había informado is the past perfect tense (Pluscuamperfecto), which is used for an action that happened before another past event. Using it here implies a sequence of past events, such as: When we arrived at the airport (a past event), the airline had not informed us (an action even further in the past) of the delay.
Could I put nos between había and informado?
No, you can never separate the auxiliary verb (había) and the past participle (informado) in Spanish compound tenses. Object pronouns like nos and negative words like no must always go before the conjugated verb haber. Therefore, it must be no nos había informado.
Why do we say del retraso? Doesn't informar just take a direct object for the news being shared?
In Spanish, when you mention the topic of the information, the verb informar usually pairs with the preposition de (meaning to inform of or to inform about). Because retraso is masculine, de and el combine to make the mandatory contraction del. You can also use sobre, but de is extremely common and natural in Spain.
I've seen the word demora used for delay. Is there a difference between retraso and demora in this context?
Both words mean delay and can often be used interchangeably. However, retraso is the standard, most common word used in Spain for late transport, like flights or trains, or being late in general. Demora means the same thing but sounds slightly more formal or technical, though you will still see it on airport screens.
Learn La aerolínea no nos había informado del retraso and more in Spanish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free