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pretérito imperfecto · Spanish

Elementary level · Premium

The imperfect tense (el pretérito imperfecto) describes past habitual actions or sets the scene in the past. It focuses on the ongoing nature of an action, not its completion.

When to use it

Habitual or repeated actions in the past
Cuando era niño, jugaba al fútbol — When I was a child, I used to play soccer
Descriptions of people, places, and situations in the past
La casa era grande y tenía un jardín — The house was big and had a garden
Telling time and age in the past
Eran las tres de la tarde — It was three in the afternoon
Actions in progress that were interrupted
Yo leía cuando él entró — I was reading when he entered

Endings · Conjugation

-ar
-abahablaba
-abashablabas
-abahablaba
-ábamoshablábamos
-abaishablabais
-abanhablaban
-er
-íacomía
-íascomías
-íacomía
-íamoscomíamos
-íaiscomíais
-íancomían
-ir
-íavivía
-íasvivías
-íavivía
-íamosvivíamos
-íaisvivíais
-íanvivían

Irregular verbs

ser (to be)
era, eras, era, éramos, erais, eran
ir (to go)
iba, ibas, iba, íbamos, ibais, iban
ver (to see)
veía, veías, veía, veíamos, veíais, veían

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