How to Say "claimed" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “claimed” is “pretendía” — B1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
Examples
Yo no pretendía ofenderte con mi comentario.
I didn't intend to offend you with my comment.
Ella pretendía que todo estaba bien, pero estaba triste.
She was claiming that everything was fine, but she was sad.
El candidato pretendía ganar el voto de los jóvenes.
The candidate was aiming to win the youth vote.
Double Identity
In this specific form, 'pretendía' can mean either 'I intended' or 'He/She/It intended.' You'll need to look at the rest of the sentence to know who is being talked about.
The 'Imperfect' Feeling
This form is used for intentions that were ongoing or unfinished in the past, rather than a single completed action.
False Friend Alert!
Mistake: “Using 'pretender' to mean 'to act like' or 'to fake'.”
Correction: Use 'fingir' for faking. 'Pretendía' means you had an intention or made a claim, not that you were playing pretend like an actor.
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