Aspectual periphrases: dejar de, ponerse a, estar a punto de, seguir + gerundio

An aspectual periphrasis is a two-part verbal construction in which a conjugated auxiliary verb carries tense, mood, and person, while a non-finite form (infinitive or gerund) carries the main lexical meaning. The auxiliary adds aspectual information — that is, it tells you something about the internal shape of the event: whether it is beginning, ending, continuing, or imminent. The four periphrases covered here are: dejar de + infinitivo (to stop doing), ponerse a + infinitivo (to start doing), estar a punto de + infinitivo (to be about to), and seguir + gerundio (to keep on doing).

• dejar de + infinitivo — use this to say that an action or habit that was in progress has come to an end. It is the standard way to express cessation in Spanish.

• ponerse a + infinitivo — use this to mark the sudden or spontaneous beginning of an action. It often implies that the start was triggered by something external or emotional.

• estar a punto de + infinitivo — use this to say that an action is (or was) on the verge of happening. The auxiliary estar is conjugated to match the tense of the surrounding context.

• seguir + gerundio — use this to say that an action is still continuing at the moment of reference. It emphasises uninterrupted duration.

Each periphrasis follows a fixed pattern. The auxiliary is conjugated normally for any tense; the non-finite form never changes.

Because ponerse a is reflexive, the reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) must agree with the subject and precede the conjugated verb.

• Dropping «de» after dejar. The connector is not optional. *Dejé fumar is ungrammatical; the correct form is Dejé de fumar. Think of dejar de as a fixed unit: the preposition is part of the periphrasis, not an optional addition.

• Using an infinitive after seguir. Unlike the other three periphrases, seguir requires a gerund. *Sigue trabajar is wrong; the correct form is Sigue trabajando. Form the gerund by replacing -ar with -ando and -er/-ir with -iendo.

• Confusing ponerse a with volver a. Both are inceptive-looking constructions, but they have different meanings. Ponerse a + infinitivo means to start doing something (first occurrence or new onset), while volver a + infinitivo means to do something again (repetition of a previous action). Saying Se puso a llorar means she started crying; Volvió a llorar means she cried again.