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GrammarNovember 15, 2023
Spanish Imperfect Tense (Pretérito Imperfecto): Complete Guide
Master the Spanish imperfect tense with conjugation tables, usage rules, and practical examples
Master the Spanish imperfect tense with conjugation tables, usage rules, and practical examples
The imperfect tense (Pretérito Imperfecto) is used to describe ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions in the past. It's often used to set the scene, describe background situations, or talk about what was happening or what someone used to do. This tense is essential for telling stories and describing past situations in Spanish.
The Spanish imperfect tense serves several important functions:
Jugaba al fútbol todos los domingos. (I used to play soccer every Sunday.)
Siempre comíamos paella los domingos. (We always ate paella on Sundays.)
Era un día soleado y los pájaros cantaban. (It was a sunny day and the birds were singing.)
Llevaba un vestido rojo cuando la conocí. (She was wearing a red dress when I met her.)
Estudiaba cuando llamaste. (I was studying when you called.)
Mientras yo cocinaba, él leía el periódico. (While I was cooking, he was reading the newspaper.)
Tenía diez años cuando nos mudamos. (I was ten years old when we moved.)
Estaba muy cansado después del viaje. (I was very tired after the trip.)
Eran las tres de la tarde. (It was three in the afternoon.)
Era medianoche cuando llegamos. (It was midnight when we arrived.)
One of the advantages of the imperfect tense is that it's relatively regular, with only three irregular verbs.
yo hablaba (I used to speak/was speaking)
tú hablabas (you used to speak/were speaking)
él/ella/usted hablaba (he/she used to speak/was speaking, you used to speak/were speaking [formal])
nosotros/as hablábamos (we used to speak/were speaking)
vosotros/as hablabais (you all used to speak/were speaking [Spain])
ellos/ellas/ustedes hablaban (they/you all used to speak/were speaking)
yo comía/vivía (I used to eat/live, was eating/living)
tú comías/vivías (you used to eat/live, were eating/living)
él/ella/usted comía/vivía (he/she/you used to eat/live, was/were eating/living)
nosotros/as comíamos/vivíamos (we used to eat/live, were eating/living)
vosotros/as comíais/vivíais (you all used to eat/live, were eating/living [Spain])
ellos/ellas/ustedes comían/vivían (they/you all used to eat/live, were eating/living)
Note: As you can see, -er and -ir verbs have identical conjugations in the imperfect tense.
Only three verbs have irregular imperfect conjugations in Spanish:
yo era
tú eras
él/ella/usted era
nosotros/as éramos
vosotros/as erais
ellos/ellas/ustedes eran
yo iba
tú ibas
él/ella/usted iba
nosotros/as íbamos
vosotros/as ibais
ellos/ellas/ustedes iban
yo veía
tú veías
él/ella/usted veía
nosotros/as veíamos
vosotros/as veíais
ellos/ellas/ustedes veían
Understanding when to use the imperfect versus the simple past is crucial for Spanish learners:
Trabajaba en un banco. (I used to work/was working in a bank.)
Visitábamos a nuestros abuelos cada verano. (We used to visit our grandparents every summer.)
Cuando era niño, jugaba al fútbol. (When I was a child, I used to play soccer.)
Trabajé en un banco durante tres años. (I worked in a bank for three years.)
Visitamos a nuestros abuelos el verano pasado. (We visited our grandparents last summer.)
Ayer jugué al fútbol con mis amigos. (Yesterday I played soccer with my friends.)
The imperfect and simple past often work together in storytelling:
Hacía sol y los niños jugaban en el parque cuando de repente empezó a llover.
(It was sunny and the children were playing in the park when suddenly it began to rain.)
Cocinaba (imperfect) cuando llamaste (simple past). (I was cooking when you called.)
Certain time expressions are commonly used with the imperfect tense:
Siempre estudiaba por la noche.
Todos los días caminaba al trabajo.
Normalmente cenábamos a las ocho.
Iba al gimnasio frecuentemente.
Mientras dormía, alguien entró en la casa.
De niña, vivía en el campo.
En aquella época, no teníamos internet.
Tenía ocho años cuando aprendí a nadar. (I was eight years old when I learned to swim.)
¿Cuántos años tenías cuando te graduaste? (How old were you when you graduated?)
Estaba muy nervioso antes del examen. (I was very nervous before the exam.)
Teníamos mucho calor ese día. (We were very hot that day.)
Eran las cinco de la tarde cuando salimos. (It was five in the afternoon when we left.)
¿Qué hora era? (What time was it?)
Remember that the imperfect is for ongoing, habitual, or background actions, while the simple past is for completed, specific actions:
Correct imperfect: Cuando era niño, jugaba al fútbol todos los días.
Correct simple past: Ayer jugué al fútbol con mis amigos.
Pay attention to the accent marks, especially in the nosotros/as forms of -ar verbs:
Correct: hablábamos (we used to speak)
Incorrect: hablabamos (missing accent)
For one-time, completed actions, use the simple past, not the imperfect:
Incorrect: Ayer iba al cine. (If you're saying you completed the action of going)
Correct: Ayer fui al cine. (I went to the cinema yesterday - completed action)
Ready to test your knowledge of the Spanish imperfect tense? Head over to our Practice page and select the pretérito imperfecto option to practice with unlimited new sentences and examples.
The practice tool will generate new sentences each time, allowing you to reinforce your understanding of imperfect tense conjugations and usage in various contexts.