![[P]](http://cache.lexico.com/g/d/premium_mh.gif){kind=small}
Spanish Word of the Day Archive
Sunday August 24, 2008
punto, adjective:
to be about to
If you are just on the point of doing something, the phrase you use to express that is estar a punto de hacer to be about to do. It can be a useful phrase if you need to make an excuse:
Perdona, no te puedo hablar ahora, es que estoy a punto de salir.
Sorry, I can’t talk now, I’m just on my way out.
To refer to the past you put estar in the imperfect tense:
Estábamos a punto de salir cuando llamaste.
We were about to go out when you rang.
If you put the verb estar in the preterite, you translate estar a punto de as almost or nearly.
Estuve a punto de llamarte.
I almost called you.
Estuve a punto de perder el tren.
I almost or nearly missed the train.
Content By
© HarperCollins Publishers Ltd 2006. All rights reserved.