ellos eran

were

ˈe ɾ a n → ser
er be + an they conjugation
verb · 3rd-person plural, imperfect tense Very common #747
were
SP: Las calles eran tranquilas.
EN: The streets were quiet.
Conjugation of ser
Indicative imperfect
SingularPlural
First era éramos
Second eras —
Third era eran
Subjunctive imperfect
SingularPlural
First era éramos
Second eras —
Third era eran

Pensé que Tom y vos eran amigos.

I thought you and Tom were friends.

En la tierra, estos tipos eran perros del Ejército.

On Earth, these guys were Army dogs.

— Avatar (2009)

Eran, como saben, los Buzzcocks.

They were, as you know, the Buzzcocks.

— Control (2007)

Eran las once horas cuando el avión de Varig llegó.

It was eleven o’clock when the Varig plane arrived.

Ustedes eran simpáticos.

You guys were nice.

Antes eran elfos.

They used to be elves.

¿No eran nueve?

Weren’t there nine?

— The Chaser (2008)

Andaba con los italianos cuando eran duros.

I hung out with the Italians when they were tough.

Estas eran mías, por ahora te servirán.

These were mine, they'll do for now.

— Señora venganza (2005)

Las plumas del pájaro eran todas de oro puro.

The bird's feathers were all pure gold.

Se cree que los cuerpos eran de la estudiante Roberta Fontes.

The bodies are believed to be those of student Roberta Fontes.

— Tropa de Élite (2007)

Tom salía con Mary cuando ambos eran adolescentes.

Tom dated Mary when they were both teenagers.

Pensaban que eran un mal presagio.

They thought they were a bad omen.

— Alerta Extinción (2026)

Las fotos de Jimmy eran diferentes a las de otra gente.

Jimmy's photos were different from other people's.

Eran mis caballos.

They were my horses.

Pueden volver a ser lo que eran.

They can go back to being what they were.

— El viaje de Chihiro (2001)

En ese entonces, el pan blanco y la carne eran considerados un lujo.

At that time, white bread and meat were considered a luxury.

Pero mis intenciones eran buenas.

But my intentions were good.

¿Cuántos eran?

How many were there?

— Zárójelentés (2020)

Eran amigos.

They were friends.

Todas las hijas del rey eran hermosas.

All of the king’s daughters were beautiful.

La mayoría de ellos eran estudiantes universitarios.

Most of them were university students.

Ahora eran todo sonrisas y amabilidad.

Now they were all smiles and kindness.

— Abre los ojos (1997)

Eran para Ginevra.

They were for Ginevra.

— Perfectos desconocidos (2016)

Eran de mundos diferentes.

They were from different worlds.

— Chainsaw Man – La película: Arco de Reze (2025)

Nuestros padres eran nuestros modelos de Dios.

Our parents were our role models of God.

Que era buena y que ellos eran inútiles.

That she was good and that they were useless.

— Dil Se.. (1998)

“¿De dónde eran sus abuelos?”"Camerún."

“Where were their grandparents from?” “Cameroon.”

Eran tres y todos estaban armados.

There were three of them and they were all armed.

Los gemelos eran más divertidos.

The twins were more fun.

— Das weiße Band - Eine deutsche Kindergeschichte (2009)

Eran en su mayoría jóvenes.

They were mostly young people.

Mi padre y mi madre eran tártaros, pero yo soy ruso.

My father and mother were Tatars, but I am Russian.

— Хрусталёв, машину! (1999)

Al principio, los indios eran amables.

At first, the Indians were friendly.

¿Fue demasiado tarde para hacer de su vida un ápice de lo que eran capaces?

Was it too late to make even the slightest use of what they were capable of?

— La Sociedad de los Poetas Muertos (1989)

Eran ventanas de vidrio en Inglaterra.

They were glass windows in England.

— La Bruja (2016)

Sí, lo eran.

Yes, they were.

Los dos eran muy buenos.

They were both very good.

Eran las cuatro de la tarde de antes de ayer.

It was four in the afternoon the day before yesterday.

— Carandiru (2003)

Eso eran tiros, ¿no?

Those were gunshots, weren’t they?

— Bajocero (2021)

Los padres de Tom eran contadores.

Tom's parents were accountants.

No sabía que todos eran huérfanos.

I didn't know they were all orphans.

— Fack ju Göhte (2013)

Eran mejores de lo que esperaba.

They were better than I expected.

Científicos que eran leales a los Na'vi.

Scientists who were loyal to the Na’vi.

— Avatar: El camino del agua (2022)

Las bebidas eran gratis.

The drinks were free.

Tom conoce a Mary desde que eran niños.

Tom has known Mary since they were children.

Alguien tenía que decirle a papá que sus técnicas eran débiles.

Someone had to tell Dad that his techniques were weak.

— Dangal (2016)

Y eran los mejores artistas.

And they were the best artists.

— La vida de Adèle (2013)

Y le preguntaron qué cosas eran baratas allí.

And they asked him what things were cheap there.

No lo eran.

They weren't.

¡No eran los únicos en peligro!

They weren't the only ones in danger!

— Estación Zombie: tren a Busan (2016)

Eran novios en el instituto.

They were boyfriend and girlfriend in high school.

Para mí, los que ayudaban a los traficantes eran igual de malos.

In my opinion, those who helped the traffickers were just as bad.

— Tropa de Élite (2007)

Eran cuatro.

There were four of them.

Ahora, el centro del Club de la Lucha eran sólo los dos hombres que peleaban.

Now, the focus of Fight Club was only on the two men who were fighting.

— El Club de la Pelea (1999)

Nuestros padres eran conductores de aquellos trenes enormes.

Our parents were drivers of those enormous trains.

— Estación central (1998)

Sus dientes eran blancos.

His teeth were white.

Eran tiempos felices.

Those were happy times.

Tom y Mary son amigos desde que eran pequeños.

Tom and Mary have been friends since they were little.

Algunos estudiantes eran de Asia, y otros de Europa.

Some students were from Asia, and others from Europe.

Dos de las tres víctimas eran oficiales de policía.

Two of the three victims were police officers.

Eran ejemplos.

They were examples.

Las paredes eran de hormigón.

The walls were made of concrete.

— El Club de la Pelea (1999)

Las cosas eran diferentes.

Things were different.

— Anatomía de una Caída (2023)

Yo creía que eran una mierda.

I thought they were crap.

— Drive: El Escape (2011)

Parece mentira, ya eran novios.

It’s hard to believe—they were already dating.

— La historia oficial (1985)

Eran unos padres terribles.

They were terrible parents.

— El jardín de los pecadores 5: Paradoja espiral (2008)

Eran jóvenes.

They were young.

— Zárójelentés (2020)

¿Cómo eran los demás?

What were the others like?

— Avatar: El camino del agua (2022)

Así eran las cosas.

That's how things were.

Mis materias favoritas en la prepa eran la geometría y la historia.

My favorite subjects in high school were geometry and history.

No, esas eran cosas de la antigua administración.

No, those were things from the previous administration.

— Pixote: A Lei do Mais Fraco (1980)

Te dije que no eran suficientes.

I told you they weren't enough.

— Yojimbo (1961)

Todos nuestros profesores eran jóvenes y amaban enseñar.

All our teachers were young and loved to teach.

Pensaba que los americanos eran honestos, no como nosotros.

I thought Americans were honest, unlike us.

— Брат 2 (2000)

Eran los mejores.

They were the best.

— El Perfecto Asesino (1994)

Aquí las personas eran bonitas y me trataban bien.

The people here were nice and treated me well.

— PK (2014)

Los japoneses eran los únicos dispuestos a ayudarme.

The Japanese were the only ones willing to help me.

— El último emperador (1987)

Creí que el trabajo eran los autos.

I thought work was cars.

Los resultados eran claros.

The results were clear.

Los postres, con el apoyo compartido de dos Tavernas, eran maravillosos.

The desserts, with the joint support of two taverns, were wonderful.

Y eran de concha.

And they were made of concha pastry.

— Nazarín (1959)

Ah, así que lo que estaban buscando eran las cajas fuertes.

Ah, so what they were looking for were the safes.

— M: El maldito (1931)

Los términos de la cuestión eran matemáticos.

The terms of the question were mathematical.

— Divorzio all'italiana (1961)

Eran como piezas de un rompecabezas que no podía encajar.

They were like pieces of a puzzle I couldn't put together.

— Hogar (2020)

Los colores eran asombrosos; el nivel de detalle, increíble.

The colors were amazing; the level of detail was incredible.

No sabía que Guillermo y Tamara eran hermanos.

I didn't know that Guillermo and Tamara were siblings.

Los dos hombres sentados en la banca eran estadounidenses.

The two men sitting on the bench were Americans.

Eran soldados.

They were soldiers.

Los errores de ortografía eran de Pépinot, por supuesto.

The spelling mistakes were Pépinot's, of course.

— Los chicos del coro (2004)

Algunos eran granjeros, algunos eran cazadores.

Some were farmers, some were hunters.

Eran dos de mis mejores clientes.

They were two of my best clients.

— Los muertos no mueren (2019)

¿Qué eran esas grabaciones?

What were those recordings?

— Anatomía de una Caída (2023)

En los primeros días de la historia americana, los negros eran esclavos.

In the early days of American history, black people were slaves.

Me dijo que eran tres dólares.

He told me it was three dollars.

— Marty Supremo (2025)

Las guardé porque las imágenes eran bonitas.

I saved them because the pictures were pretty.

— El nombre de la venganza (2002)

Las canciones viejas eran mucho, mucho mejores.

The old songs were much, much better.

Ella lo conoció cuando ambos eran estudiantes.

She met him when they were both students.

Eran una de mis bandas favoritas en la secundaria.

They were one of my favorite bands in high school.

Eran felices juntos.

They were happy together.

Muchos de esos árboles eran amigos míos.

Many of those trees were friends of mine.

Miró su reloj y se dio cuenta de que eran más de las cinco.

He looked at his watch and realized it was past five o'clock.

Tus padres también lo eran.

Your parents were too.

— Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal (2001)

Casi todos los que estaban presentes eran mujeres.

Almost everyone present was a woman.

¡Cuando yo digo que sus reverencias eran unos benditos!

When I say those reverends were a bunch of saints!

Discúlpame, pero los únicos que intentaban ayudarme eran mis amigos.

Excuse me, but the only ones trying to help me were my friends.

— It (Eso) (2017)

Eran, pero una vez caen dentro ya está.

They were, but once they fall in, that's it.

— PK (2014)

Algunas eran mucho peores que otras.

Some were much worse than others.

Eran las seis.

It was six o'clock.

Y tampoco eran copias buenas.

And they weren't good copies either.

— Kiki: Entregas a Domicilio (1989)

¿No eran trece?

Weren’t there thirteen?

— Los Siete Samuráis (1954)

Esto significó que eran demasiado débiles para causar más problemas.

This meant they were too weak to cause any more problems.

Estaba enfermo de ver que mis hábitos eran los de mi padre.

I was sick of seeing that my habits were those of my father.

— Астенический синдром (1989)

Luego, también eran de alguien de su familia.

Then again, they also belonged to someone in their family.

— Legado en los huesos (2019)

¿Eso eran?

Was that all?

— Equipo Demolición (2026)

Para ser precisa, los cinco socios que eran un dolor de cabeza.

To be precise, the five partners were the ones who were a pain in the neck.

Cuando llegó a casa ya eran las doce.

When he got home it was already twelve o'clock.

No me dejaron entrar porque mis pantalones cortos eran demasiado cortos.

They wouldn’t let me in because my shorts were too short.

Las luces del cielo eran las estrellas del norte.

The lights in the sky were the northern stars.

Dos eran de mi raza.

Two of them were of my race.

— El señor de los anillos: Las dos torres (2002)

Eran mis vacaciones.

It was my vacation.

— El Club de la Pelea (1999)

Eran astutos.

They were cunning.

En realidad, tampoco yo tenía idea de qué eran esos cuadernos.

Honestly, I had no idea what those notebooks were either.

¿Para quién eran esos putos pendientes?

Who the hell were those earrings for?

— Perfectos desconocidos (2016)

Tom no quería comer los gusanos aún cuando eran ricos en proteínas.

Tom didn’t want to eat the worms even though they were rich in protein.

Casi todo eran golpes fáciles.

Almost all of them were easy shots.

— Buenos Muchachos (1990)

Sus demandas eran las siguientes.

Their demands were as follows.

Pensamos que eran tipos de seguridad.

We thought they were security guys.

Tonio estará caminando sobre tierras que eran nuestras.

Tonio will be walking on lands that used to be ours.

— Detrás del sol (2001)

Pensaba que nuestras hijas eran bastante espectaculares.

I thought our daughters were quite spectacular.

— Paris, je t'aime (2006)

Eran parte de la dictadura, Bruzzo.

They were part of the dictatorship, Bruzzo.

— Argentina 1985 (2022)

Eran de su abuelo.

They belonged to his grandfather.

— Diarios de motocicleta (2004)

Tom pensaba que el japonés y el coreano eran el mismo idioma.

Tom thought Japanese and Korean were the same language.

Mis órdenes eran entregarte información sobre el Sindicato.

My orders were to give you information about the Union.

Esos scones eran maravillosos —.

Those scones were wonderful—.

Tom le explicó a Mary que los delfines eran animales pacíficos.

Tom explained to Mary that dolphins were peaceful animals.

Siempre pensé que Tom y Mary eran una buena pareja.

I always thought Tom and Mary made a good couple.

Dijiste que casi todos tus amigos eran canadienses.

You said that almost all of your friends were Canadian.

No estoy enojado contigo, mis expectativas sobre ti ya eran bajas.

I'm not angry with you, my expectations of you were already low.

Todos los pueblos eran preciosos.

All the villages were beautiful.

Eran tres.

There were three of them.

Pero para mí esas cartas eran oro.

But for me, those letters were gold.

— Divorzio all'italiana (1961)

Eran encantadores.

They were lovely.

Iba al colegio con su hermana todas las mañanas desde que eran pequeñas.

She went to school with her sister every morning since they were little.

Era bueno en algunas cosas, que eran útiles en el ejército.

He was good at some things, which were useful in the army.

— Un buen ladrón (2025)

Ellos originalmente eran granjeros.

They were originally farmers.

Él y Markofferson eran amigos.

He and Markofferson were friends.

¿Qué pasó contigo y tu hermana cuando eran adolescentes?

What happened between you and your sister when you were teenagers?

— El Infierno (2010)

De repente, todos en el pueblo eran expertos, en el arte de concebir un niño.

Suddenly, everyone in the village was an expert in the art of conceiving a child.

— Dangal (2016)

Las provisiones especiales eran distintos licores —.

The special provisions consisted of various liquors—.

Me dijeron que eran bilingües.

They told me they were bilingual.

¿Y esto solo eran los baños del emperador?

And these were just the emperor’s baths?

— La dolce vita (1960)

Eran voces tranquilas, no así.

They were calm voices, not like that.

— Anatomía de una Caída (2023)

Eran las famosas mujeres del Qin Huai River.

They were the famous women of the Qin Huai River.

— Las flores de la guerra (2011)

Los ingredientes de la prisión eran miserables.

The prison's contents were miserable.

— Señora venganza (2005)

Casi todas eran mujeres.

Almost all of them were women.

Él afirma que sólo eran campos de trabajo.

He claims they were just labor camps.

— Nuremberg: El Juicio Del Siglo (2025)

Él sabía que eran más grandes juntos.

He knew they were stronger together.

— Avatar: Fuego y ceniza (2025)

Eran mi banco y mi sastre.

They were my bank and my tailor.

— PK (2014)

Tom y Mary eran vecinos, pero casi nunca se veían.

Tom and Mary were neighbors, but they hardly ever saw each other.

Ellas eran amigas.

They were friends.

Lucía Aguirre y esta mujer eran del Baztán.

Lucía Aguirre and this woman were from Baztán.

— Legado en los huesos (2019)

Eran Fern y Lily.

They were Fern and Lily.

— Los muertos no mueren (2019)

Esas grabaciones eran una porquería.

Those recordings were rubbish.

— Pecadores (2025)

Su hija, al igual que su hijo, eran famosos.

His daughter, like his son, was famous.

Quizás eran nervios.

Maybe it was nerves.

— La dolce vita (1960)

Las otras dos eran bebés.

The other two were babies.

— Hamnet (2025)

A ti, eran para ti.

They were for you.

— Perfectos desconocidos (2016)

Al fin y al cabo, eran ciudades de piratas.

After all, they were pirate towns.

Las nubes ya no eran negras.

The clouds weren't black anymore.

Sólo eran palabras vacías.

They were just empty words.

— La Caída (2004)

¿Ustedes eran novios?

Were you two dating?

— Los Visitantes (1993)

Eran nuestras hasta que llegó el terrateniente y nos sacó a patadas.

They were ours until the landowner came and kicked us out.

— Diarios de motocicleta (2004)

Las rosquillas saladas eran la merienda favorita de los niños.

Salty doughnuts were the children's favorite snack.

Algunos días eran mejores que otros para sacar un barco grande del muelle.

Some days were better than others for getting a large boat out of the harbor.

Pensaba que eran unas vacaciones.

I thought it was a vacation.

— Vida solo hay una (2011)

Eran de Chapayev.

They were from Chapayev.

— Брат 2 (2000)

¿Cuántos crees que eran?

How many do you think there were?

— Yojimbo (1961)

Sus músculos eran duros como el acero.

His muscles were as hard as steel.

Según su lógica, todos los problemas de Samuel eran culpa mía.

According to his logic, all of Samuel's problems were my fault.

— Anatomía de una Caída (2023)

Porque eran los pasos de un hombre muerto.

Because they were the footsteps of a dead man.

— Pacto de sangre (1944)

Nuestros padres eran el modelo de Dios.

Our parents were the model of God.

— El Club de la Pelea (1999)

Todas las ideas para esas historias eran de Vincent.

All the ideas for those stories were Vincent’s.

Chico y Ramón, sus dos hermanos, también eran mis amigos.

Chico and Ramón, his two brothers, were also my friends.

— El Bueno, El Malo y El Feo (1966)

Pensaba que sólo los japoneses eran adictos al trabajo.

I thought only the Japanese were workaholics.

Eran tiempos peligrosos.

Those were dangerous times.

Sí, ni siquiera eran reales.

Yes, they weren't even real.

— Ne Zha (2019)

Eran elegantes, nuestros hermanos.

Our brothers were elegant.

— Las alas del deseo (1987)

Las cosas eran geniales antes de que llegaras.

Things were great before you arrived.

— Hoy Quiero Volver Solito (2014)

Nuestros pasaportes eran lo único que necesitábamos.

Our passports were all we needed.

Los informes eran confusos.

The reports were confusing.

Sí, entendemos que ustedes eran amigas de ambas damas.

Yes, we understand that you were friends with both ladies.

Pensé que Tom y María eran felices.

I thought Tom and Maria were happy.

Eran unos veinte dólares.

It was about twenty dollars.

Eran la cocaína y las armas.

It was cocaine and weapons.

— Zeta (2026)

¿Cómo eran?

What were they like?

— Dil Se.. (1998)

Él y nuestros hijos eran inseparables.

He and our children were inseparable.

— Avatar: El camino del agua (2022)

Los padres de Tom eran ambos profesores.

Tom's parents were both teachers.

Vivo o muerto, lo que necesitaban eran pruebas contra él.

Dead or alive, what they needed was evidence against him.

— Zeta (2026)

Rómulo y Remo eran hermanos.

Romulus and Remus were brothers.

Eran los mismos viejos lugares donde se suponía que debía vivir mi vida.

They were the same old places where I was supposed to live my life.

— El tiempo contigo (2019)

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