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Imperfect Tense

The document describes the imperfect tense in Spanish. It is used to talk about past habitual or repeated actions, actions that were in progress in the past, times and dates in the past, age in the past, and descriptions of characteristics, conditions, and feelings in the past. It provides regular and irregular conjugations of verbs in the imperfect tense and examples of its uses. Exercises are included to practice forming verbs in the imperfect tense.

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Adriana Victoria Mancilla
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241 views5 pages

Imperfect Tense

The document describes the imperfect tense in Spanish. It is used to talk about past habitual or repeated actions, actions that were in progress in the past, times and dates in the past, age in the past, and descriptions of characteristics, conditions, and feelings in the past. It provides regular and irregular conjugations of verbs in the imperfect tense and examples of its uses. Exercises are included to practice forming verbs in the imperfect tense.

Uploaded by

Adriana Victoria Mancilla
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Imperfect Tense Forms

The Spanish imperfect tense (el imperfecto) is used to describe past habitual
actions or to talk about what someone was doing when they were interrupted by
something else.

Regular Imperfect Forms


There are only two sets of endings for regular imperfect verbs in Spanish, one for -
ar verbs and one for both -er and -ir verbs.

To conjugate a regular verb in the imperfect tense in Spanish, simply remove the
infinitive ending (-ar, -er, or -ir) and add the imperfect ending that matches the subject.

Regular Imperfect Verb Endings

Subject -ar Verbs -er and -ir Verbs


yo -aba -ía
tú -abas -ías
él, ella, usted -aba -ía
nosotros -ábamos -íamos
vosotros -abais -íais
ellos, ellas, ustedes -aban -ían

Subject Hablar (to talk) Comer (to eat) Vivir (to live)
yo hablaba comía vivía
tú hablabas comías vivías
él, ella, usted hablaba comía vivía
nosotros hablábamos comíamos vivíamos
vosotros hablabais comíais vivíais
ellos, ellas, hablaban comían vivían
ustedes

Irregular Imperfect Forms

There are only three verbs with irregular conjugations in the imperfect: ir, ser, and ver.

Irregular Imperfect Conjugations

Subject Ir (to go) Ser (to be) Ver (to see)


yo iba era veía
tú ibas eras veías
él, ella, usted iba era veía
nosotros íbamos éramos veíamos
vosotros ibais erais veíais
ellos, ellas, ustedes iban eran veían
Uses of the Imperfect Tense
In general, the imperfect is used to talk about past actions, conditions, or events that
occurred habitually or repeatedly or that were in progress at a point in the past. It is
also used to tell time, talk about dates, give a person's age, and describe
characteristics, conditions, and feelings in the past.

1. Habitual or Repeated Actions

Habitual or repeated actions are those that were done over and over in the past. These
are often things a person used to or would do.

Almorzábamos cada día.


We used to eat lunch together every day.

Todos los sábados las mujeres iban de compras.


Every Saturday the ladies would go shopping.

2. Actions that Were in Progress in the Past

It's quite common to see the imperfect used to talk about something that was
happening when something else occurred. It's also used for actions that continued in
the past for an unspecified period of time.

When talking about a past action in progress that was interrupted, the action in
progress is in the imperfect, while the interrupting action is in the preterite. For more on
the differences between the preterite and the imperfect, check out this article!
Iba a clase cuando sonó el teléfono.
I was going to class when the telephone rang.

Mi papá cocinaba cuando entré a casa.


My dad was cooking when I came in the house.

A veces le dolían las manos y las piernas.


Sometimes her hands and feet ached.

3. Times and Dates

The imperfect is used to talk about times and dates in the past.

Eran las tres de la tarde.


It was three o'clock in the afternoon.
Era el 9 de mayo.
It was May 9th.

4. Age

The imperfect is commonly used to talk about age in the past.

La niña tenía 4 años.


The little girl was 4 years old.

Los perros tenían dos años cuando los adopté.


The dogs were two years old when I adopted them.

5. Descriptions of Characteristics, Conditions, and Feelings

The imperfect is used to give descriptions in the past, especially those that set the
scene in terms of the senses.

Mi profesor era alto y tenía el pelo ondulado.


My professor was tall and had wavy hair.

El campo era bello.


The countryside was beautiful.

Hacía calor esa noche.


It was hot that night.

Me sentía feliz con mi trabajo nuevo.


I was happy with my new job.

Quería mudarme a otro país.


I wanted to move to another country.
Ejercicios

1. Completa los textos con la forma correcta del imperfecto de los verbos
entre paréntesis.

I.

Nosotros ____________________ (ser) muy buenos amigos de los González; nos


_____________________ (ver) todos los domingos. Si ellos no ___________________
(venir) a visitarnos a nuestra casa, nosotros ________________________ (ir) a la casa
de ellos.
II.
Siempre ______________________ (almorzar) en aquel restaurante.
__________________ (Servir) la mejor comida de toda la ciudad. Cuando me
_________ (ver) entrar, me ________________________ (llevar) a la mejor mesa y me
___________________________ (traer) el menú. ¡Se _______________________
(comer) bien allí!
III.
Cuando yo _____________________ (ser) un niño de siete años la vida no me
______________ (parecer) nada complicada. ____________________ (Pasar) los días
jugando, inventando amigos, y conversando con mis juguetes. Me
______________________ (encantar) un juguete que todavía guardo en mi dormitorio:
un tigre de peluche con el cual ______________________ (soler) tener conversaciones
animadas por la noche. Cuando el hijo de los vecinos __________________ (venir) a
jugar conmigo, nosotros siempre ______________________ (jugar) con el tigre de
peluche y le ________________________ (hacer) preguntas sobre su vida en la jungla.
______________________ (Divertirse) mucho y siempre _____________________
(llevarse) bien, especialmente cuando mi juguete favorito nos _____________________
(ayudar) a crear un mundo fantástico.

IV.

Cuando ____________________ (tener; yo) catorce años, _____________________


(vivir; nosotros) en el campo. __________________ (Ir; yo) al colegio en una ciudad
cerca de casa y a veces ____________________ (volver; yo) tarde porque
_______________________ (preferir) quedarme a jugar con mis amigos. Ellos a veces
__________________ (venir) a visitarnos, especialmente cuando ________________
(ser) el cumpleaños de mi madre. Siempre lo__________________ (celebrar; nosotros)
con una gran fiesta y ese día mi padre _________________________ (hacer) todos los
preparativos y _______________________ (cocinar) él mismo. Nos
_______________________ (visitar) parientes de todas partes y siempre
__________________ (quedarse) algunos con nosotros por dos o tres días. Durante
esos días ____________________ (dormir; nosotros) poco porque mis primos y yo
______________ (acostarse) en la sala de recreo y allí siempre ___________________
(haber) gente hasta muy tarde. Todos nosotros lo __________________________
(pasar) muy bien. Pero ésos ___________________ (ser) otros tiempos, claro.

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