Preterite VS Imperfect Spanish 2 Buen Viaje, p

Unlike English that has only one past tense, Spanish has 2, the preterite and the imperfect. Though they both express action in the past, there are specific uses for each tense. The preterite is generally used to relate what happened; it tells the story or provides the plot. It is often translated as the ed in English (walked). The imperfect gives background information and describes conditions or continuing events. 2

When to use the Preterite -ed/ did 1. Completed action in the past 2. Action with a definite beginning or end 3. Series of completed events 4. Interruption action 5. Clue words: Un día – one day, Una vez- one time, ayer- yesterday, anoche- last night, el mes (año, día) pasado- last… 3

When to use the Imperfect -used to/ would do. -was/were doing 1. Continuous, repeated, habitual action in the past 2. Actions with an indefinite beginning or end 3. Description (people, places, things, events, weather, time, age, etc) 4. Mental activities or conditions and emotions (creer, pensar, desear, preferir, poder, querer, saber, tener ganas) 5. Clue words- todos los días, a menudo, de vez en cuando, a veces, mientras, siempre, generalmente, normalmente, frecuentemente, los martes+, cada… 4

When to use the Preterite and Imperfect in Compound Sentences. 1) When you have an ongoing action and an interruption action, the ongoing action will be imperfect and the interruption action will be preterite. Ex: Miraba la tele cuando sonó el teléfono. 2) When you have 2 simultaneous actions, the imperfect is used for both actions. Ex: Mientras las cocineras preparaban el postre, los meseros servían la entrada. 3) When you have a series of completed events, the preterite is used for all the actions. Ex: Yo me desperté, me duché, me vestí, y me fui a la escuela. 5

Practice 1 Find and identify verbs Estaba nerviosa porque tenía que organizar una fiesta para unos clientes y mi jefe. Era una comida para celebrar un contracto importante. La semana pasada llamé al restaurante Brisamar para hacer las reservaciones. También le hablé al cocinero para decirle el menú. Anoche todos fueron al restaurante para comer. Me alegré mucho porque todos comieron muy bien y se divirtieron mucho. 6

Practice 2 Translate using the preterite or imperfect as appropriate 1. When I was young, I used to read a lot. 2. I was studying when my friend came in. 3. Last year we went to Dallas on vacation. 4. Generally I visited my grandma on Sundays. 5. Yesterday I bought milk. 7

Continued: 6. It was a beautiful day. 7. We played soccer at 7pm. 8. He was a tall and handsome man. 9. I was sleeping while my brother was playing. 10. We always ate fruit for dessert. 8

Practice 3 1) Cambia al pasado. 2) Termina el cuento Es un día lluvioso. Hay una casa grande en una calle tranquila. Los dueños no están en casa. Entonces, un hombre misterioso entra la casa. Piensa robar los diamantes que los dueños tienen en su caja fuerte. Empieza a abrir la caja cuando entra… ¡Batman, el hombre murciélago! Entonces… 9

Tarea Textbook p , exercises 14, 15, 16, 19, 20 10