The imperfect tense

1
The imperfect tense
(El tiempo imperfecto)
Sí, pero con las rebajas que ofrecen en este
almacén . . . qué ganga!
Antes, siempre hacía mis compras en las mejores
boutiques.
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The conjugation of -ar verbs
Just as with other tenses, we always start with
the stem of the verb.
hablar
aba
ábamos
habl
habl
abas
abais
habl
habl
only on the nosotros form
aba
aban
habl
habl
There are no irregular -ar verbs in the imperfect!
3
The conjugation of -er verbs
comer
ía
íamos
com
com
ías
íais
com
com
ía
ían
com
com
All forms have a written accent over the í.
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The conjugation of -ir verbs
escribir
ía
íamos
escrib
escrib
ías
íais
escrib
escrib
ía
ían
escrib
escrib
All forms have a written accent over the í.
Notice that the conjugation of -ir verbs is
identical to that of -er verbs.
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There are only three irregular verbs!
ser
era
éramos
eras
erais
only on the nosotros form
era
eran
6
There are only three irregular verbs!
ir
iba
íbamos
ibas
ibais
only on the nosotros form
iba
iban
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There are only three irregular verbs!
ver
veía
veíamos
veías
veíais
veía
veían
All forms have a written accent over the í.
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The use of the imperfect
The imperfect is always used to express age and
time of day in the past
Yo tenía quince años cuando aprendí a manejar.
I was fifteen years old when I learned to drive.
Eran las diez cuando el tren llegó a la estación.
It was ten oclock when the train arrived at the
station.
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The use of the imperfect
While the preterit tense is used to describe
actions viewed as completed, the imperfect is
used to . . .

• Express that which happened habitually

• Express ongoing actions and states in the past,
  without reference to their beginning or ending

• Express mental, physical, and emotional states in
  the past

• Describe scenarios and situations in the past

• Express indirect statements

10
The use of the imperfect
Expressing the habitual (used to, would)
One of the classic uses of the imperfect is to
describe our childhood habits and activities
Cuando yo era niño, yo . . .
When I was a child, I . . .
. . . siempre estudiaba solo en mi cuarto.
. . . always studied (used to study) alone in my
room.
. . . jugaba con mis amiguitos todos los días.
. . . would play with my friends every day.
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The use of the imperfect
Expressing the habitual (used to, would)
Cuando yo era niño, yo . . .
When I was a child, I . . .
. . . comía cereal cada mañana.
. . . used to eat cereal every morning.
. . . leía tebeos todo el tiempo.
. . . read comic books all the time.
. . . iba todos los veranos a Disneylandia con
mis padres.
. . . would go to Disneyland every summer with my
parents.
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The use of the imperfect
Expressing the habitual (used to, would)
Of course, the imperfect is not limited to
discussing childhood activities. Any habitual
activities are expressed in the imperfect.
Pedro comía en ese restaurante todos los sábados.
Pedro used to eat at that restaurant every
Saturday.
Ana iba de compras todo el tiempo.
Ana used to go shopping all the time.
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The use of the imperfect
While the preterit tense is used to describe
actions viewed as completed, the imperfect is
used to . . .

• Express that which happened habitually

• Express ongoing actions and states in the past,
  without reference to their beginning or ending

• Express mental, physical, and emotional states in
  the past

• Describe scenarios and situations in the past

• Express indirect statements

14
The use of the imperfect
Expressing the ongoing (was . . . ing)
The imperfect expresses something that was
happening at a given time, without reference to
its beginning or ending
Roberto estudiaba en su cuarto.
Roberto was studying in his room.
Elena lavaba los platos en la cocina.
Elena was washing the dishes in the kitchen.
Ayer a eso de las cuatro yo leía el periódico
mientras mi esposa miraba la tele.
Yesterday around four oclock I was reading the
newspaper while my wife was watching TV.
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The use of the imperfect
Expressing the ongoing (was . . . ing)
Frequently the ongoing action is interrupted by
another abrupt or completed action that is
expressed, of course, in the preterit
Roberto estudiaba en su cuarto cuando el teléfono
sonó.
Roberto was studying in his room when the phone
rang.
Elena lavaba los platos en la cocina cuando
alguien tocó a la puerta.
Elena was washing the dishes in the kitchen when
someone knocked at the door.
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The use of the imperfect
Expressing the ongoing (was . . . ing)
Frequently the ongoing action is interrupted by
another abrupt or completed action that is
expressed, of course, in the preterit
Conversábamos con el dependiente cuando Lourdes
entró en la joyería.
We were talking with the clerk when Lourdes
entered the jewelry store.
Las chicas salían de la tienda cuando Jorge las
vio.
The girls were leaving the store when Jorge saw
them.
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The use of the imperfect
While the preterit tense is used to describe
actions viewed as completed, the imperfect is
used to . . .

• Express that which happened habitually

• Express ongoing actions and states in the past,
  without reference to their beginning or ending

• Express mental, physical, and emotional states in
  the past

• Describe scenarios and situations in the past

• Express indirect statements

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The use of the imperfect
Expressing mental, physical and emotional states
Alicia estaba contenta durante el concierto.
Alicia was happy during the concert.
Nos sentíamos mal después de comer allí.
We felt sick after eating there.
De niño yo siempre creía en Santa Claus.
As a child I always believed in Santa Claus.
Los estudiantes no querían estudiar aunque sabían
que era necesario.
The students didnt want to study even though
they knew that it was necessary.
19
The use of the imperfect
While the preterit tense is used to describe
actions viewed as completed, the imperfect is
used to . . .

• Express that which happened habitually

• Express ongoing actions and states in the past,
  without reference to their beginning or ending

• Express mental, physical, and emotional states in
  the past

• Describe scenarios and situations in the past

• Express indirect statements

20
The use of the imperfect
Describing scenarios and situations
Era un día triste. Hacía muy mal tiempo y
llovía. Yo leía en mi cuarto y esperaba una
llamada telefónica. Anita practicaba el piano en
la sala y los niños jugaban a la pata coja en el
garaje.
It was a sad day. The weather was very bad and
it was raining. I was reading in my room and
waiting for a telephone call. Anita was
practicing the piano in the living room and the
children were playing hopscotch in the garage.
21
The use of the imperfect
While the preterit tense is used to describe
actions viewed as completed, the imperfect is
used to . . .

• Express that which happened habitually

• Express ongoing actions and states in the past,
  without reference to their beginning or ending

• Express mental, physical, and emotional states in
  the past

• Describe scenarios and situations in the past

• Express indirect statements

22
The use of the imperfect
Expressing indirect statements
Carlos dijo que Juan venía a mi casa a las ocho.
Carlos said that Juan was coming to my house at
eight oclock.
Los agentes afirmaron que los espías hablaban muy
bien el inglés.
The agents affirmed that the spies spoke English
very well.
El volante policíaco representa que el
delincuente era bajo y cojeaba un poco.
The police flyer states that the criminal was
short and limped somewhat.
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Overview of the use of the imperfect
1. Age and time of day in the past
Yo tenía treinta años cuando me casé.
I was thirty years old when I got married.
Eran las tres cuando Hugo llegó.
It was three oclock when Hugo arrived.
"used to"
2. Habitual action
"would"
De niño, yo siempre comía cereal.
As a child, I always used to eat cereal.
Íbamos al parque con frecuencia.
We would go to the park frequently.
Hablábamos español en nuestra casa.
We spoke Spanish in our house.
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Overview of the use of the imperfect
3. Ongoing action
"was . . . ing"
Carlos leía el periódico mientras su hijo cortaba
el césped.
Carlos was reading the newspaper while his son
was mowing the lawn.
4. Descriptionsetting the scene
Era un día muy lúgubre. El cielo estaba nublado
y llovía a cántaros.
It was a very gloomy day. The sky was cloudy and
it was raining cats and dogs.
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Overview of the use of the imperfect
5. Mental, physical, and emotional states
Juan pensaba que necesitaba más dinero del que
tenía para el viaje.
Juan thought that he needed more money than he
had for the trip.
6. Indirect statements
Pancho dijo que su hermano vendía su coche.
Pancho said that his brother was selling his car.
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FIN