The imperfect tense
(El tiempo imperfecto)
Antes, siempre
hacía mis compras
en las mejores
boutiques.
Sí, pero con las
rebajas que
ofrecen en este
almacén . . .
¡qué ganga!
The conjugation of -ar verbs
Just as with other tenses, we always start with the
stem of the verb.
hablar
hablaba
hablabas
hablaba
Notice the
written
accent mark!
hablábamos
on the
hablabais only
nosotros form
hablaban
There are no irregular -ar verbs in the imperfect!
The conjugation of -er verbs
comer
comía
comías
comía
comíamos
comíais
comían
All forms have a written
accent over the í.
The conjugation of -ir verbs
escribir
escribía
escribías
escribía
escribíamos
escribíais
escribían
All forms have a written
accent over the í.
Notice that the conjugation of -ir verbs is identical to
that of -er verbs.
There are only three irregular verbs!
ser
era
eras
era
Notice the
written
accent mark!
éramos
on the
erais only
nosotros form
eran
There are only three irregular verbs!
ir
iba
ibas
iba
Notice the
written
accent mark!
íbamos
on the
ibais only
nosotros form
iban
There are only three irregular verbs!
ver
veía
veías
veía
veíamos
veíais
veían
All forms have a written
accent over the í.
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 o’clock when the train arrived at the
station.
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
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.
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.
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.
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
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 o’clock I was reading the
newspaper while my wife was watching TV.
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.
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.
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
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 didn’t want to study even though they
knew that it was necessary.
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
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.
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
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
o’clock.
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.
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 o’clock when Hugo arrived.
2. Habitual action
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.
Overview of the use of the imperfect
3. Ongoing action
Carlos leía el periódico mientras su hijo cortaba
el césped.
Carlos was reading the newspaper while his son was
mowing the lawn.
4. Description—setting 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.
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.
FIN