Quote:
Originally Posted by dupond
I think most times I use the phrase "I had hoped that" it would be to talk about something I had hoped for and it didn't end up happening. In that case, would the past subjunctive and conditional be interchangeable?
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I think the conditional and the past subjunctive are interchangeable with "tenía la esperanza de que", but I still prefer the subjunctive.
- Tenía la esperanza de que vendrías. = Tenía la esperanza de que vinieras.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dupond
In the case where the thing you had hope for does end up happening, would "Tenía la esperanza de que + the imperfect subjunctive" translate as "I was hoping"?
E.g. Does "Tenía la esperanza de que lo dijeras" translate as "I was hoping you'd say that."
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The context will tell the best translation for this kind of expressions. If you had some certainty about what would happen, you may just say "Esperaba que lo dijeras"/ "esperaba que dijeras eso", because you saw your hope confirmed.
When uncertainty is higher, you may keep "tenía la esperanza de que", because it expresses that I was finding this event unlikely.
Conjugations and tenses rarely have a fixed translation. ;(