What's the difference between
きのう、いちじかんほんをよみました。
and
きのう、いちじかんほんをよんでいました。
?
What would be the equivalent English translations for the two sentences?
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1 Answer
With action verbs like 読む{よむ} the -ている form becomes -ing in English.
昨日{きのう}、一{いち}時間{じかん}本{ほん}を読み{よみ}ました。
I read a book for one hour yesterday.
昨日{きのう}、一{いち}時間{じかん}本{ほん}を読{よ}んでいました。
I was reading a book for one hour yesterday.
answered Jun 15, 2016 at 7:16
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Is it just me or would 一時間本を読みました sound a little odd? I feel like if you specify a period of time that you should probably use ～ていた instead of ～た. Commented Jun 15, 2016 at 9:23
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@sazarando If you focus a point in time, past progressive form is appropriate like あなたが電話をくれたとき、私はお風呂に入っていました( I was taking a bath when you called me.). If not, I think both are used as same meaning. Commented Jun 15, 2016 at 13:02
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(Excuse me if this is a dumb question but) what's the difference of "read a book for one hour yesterday" and "was reading a book for one hour yesterday"?– chocolate ♦Commented Jun 17, 2016 at 9:13
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@chocolate Excellent question. Without any further context both sound identical to me. If I think harder, maybe "was reading a book" sounds more like you are re-living the moment, whereas "read a book" is just a plain, boring statement of fact. How do you think they differ in Japanese? Commented Jun 17, 2016 at 16:05