Decide whether the imperfect form of the verb in the sen Éramos una hermosa tarde de verano.

The Correct Answer and Explanation is:

The correct answer is incorrect.

The sentence “Éramos una hermosa tarde de verano” contains a grammatical error related to subject-verb agreement.

The verb “éramos” is the first-person plural form of the verb “ser” (to be) in the imperfect tense. Its direct translation is “we were.” Therefore, the sentence literally translates to “We were a beautiful summer afternoon.” This statement is illogical, as a group of people cannot be an afternoon. The subject implied by the verb (“nosotros,” meaning “we”) does not match the description that follows (“una hermosa tarde de verano”).

The sentence is clearly intended to describe a past scene or setting. The imperfect tense is the appropriate choice for this function in Spanish, as it is used to describe ongoing conditions, provide background information, or set the stage for other past events.

The true subject of this descriptive sentence is “una hermosa tarde de verano” (a beautiful summer afternoon). This is a third-person, singular noun phrase. Consequently, the verb “ser” must be conjugated in the third-person singular form of the imperfect tense, which is “era.”

The corrected sentence should be: “Era una hermosa tarde de verano.” This properly translates to “It was a beautiful summer afternoon.” In this correct version, the verb “era” (“it was”) correctly agrees in number and person with its subject, “la tarde” (the afternoon). When describing weather, time, or general scenes in Spanish, the third-person singular form of the verb is used, much like the impersonal “it” in English.

In summary, the verb “éramos” is incorrect because it implies a plural subject (“we”), while the sentence is describing a singular noun (the afternoon). The correct verb form is “era” to match the singular subject.

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