Modern Spanish Grammar: A Practical Guide

73Talking about the pastThis chapter covers all the main forms used in Spanish to refer to the past. You willlearn to refer to past states and events related to the present as well as the recent,immediate and more distant past. Through coverage of these and other uses you willbecome familiar with the Spanish equivalent of constructions such as ‘I have/had doneit’, ‘I did it’, and a range of other forms related to the past.73.173.1.1Talking about past events related to the present or therecent pastPast events related to the presentPast events which are related to the present, for example ‘He’s not feeling well becausehe’s drunk too much’, are normally expressed in Peninsular Spanish with the perfect. 17.2 (p. 73)Ha bebido demasiado. He/she has drunk too much.¡Lo has quebrado!¿Qué ha dicho usted?¿Qué te ha pasado?You’ve broken it.What have you said?What has happened to you?Note that in these examples, there is a relation between an action which has takenplace and a context or situation which is still valid. In the second example, ¡Lo hasquebrado!, ‘You’ve broken it’, that context might be said to be something like Era elúnico que tenía, ‘It was the only one I had’.73.1.2Regional variationsIn Galicia and Asturias as in Latin America, the preterite is common in this context, andit is often used instead of the perfect. But among indigenous people, in countries likeBolivia and Peru, the perfect seems much more common, even in contexts where mostSpanish speakers would use the preterite. 17.4 (p. 75)Bebió demasiado.He/she drunk/drank too much.¡Lo quebraste!You’ve broken/broke it.415