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!

habl aba La conjugación de los verbos -ar habl abas aba ábamos abais aban There are no irregular -ar verbs in the imperfect! Notice the written accent mark! only on the nosotros form Just as with other tenses, we always start with the stem of the verb. hablar

com ía com ías ía íamos íais ían All forms have a written accent over the í. The conjugation of -er verbs comer

escrib ía escrib ías ía íamos íais ían La conjugación de los verbos -ir All forms have a written accent over the í. escribir Notice that the conjugation of -ir verbs is identical to that of -er verbs.

era eras era éramos erais eran Solamente hay 3 irregulares… ser Notice the written accent mark! only on the nosotros form

iba ibas iba íbamos ibais iban Solamente hay 3 irregulares… ir Notice the written accent mark! only on the nosotros form

veía veías veía veíamos veíais veían Solamente hay 3 irregulares… All forms have a written accent over the í. ver

While the preterit tense is used to describe actions viewed as completed, the imperfect is used to... 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 Express that which happened habitually The use of the imperfect

Imperfect Keywords a menudo(often) a veces(sometimes) cada día(every day) cada semana(every week) cada mes(every month) cada año(every year) con frecuencia(frequently) de vez en cuando(from time to time) en aquella época(at that time) frecuentemente(frequently)

Imperfect Keywords generalmente(usually) muchas veces(many times) mucho(a lot) nunca(never) por un rato(for awhile) siempre(always) tantas veces(so many times) todas las semanas(every week) todos los días(every day) todo el tiempo(all the time) varias veces(several times)

The imperfect is always used to express age and time of day in the past:  Yo tenía quince años cuando aprendí a manejar.  Eran las diez cuando el tren llegó a la estación. The use of the imperfect I was fifteen years old when I learned to drive. It was ten o’clock when the train arrived at the station.

One of the classic uses of the imperfect is to describe our childhood habits and activities: Expressing the habitual (used to, would)  Cuando yo era niño, yo... ... siempre estudiaba solo en mi cuarto. ... jugaba con mis amiguitos todos los días. The use of the imperfect When I was a child, I always studied (used to study) alone in my room.... would play with my friends every day.

Expressing the habitual (used to, would) ... comía cereal cada mañana. ... leía tebeos todo el tiempo. ... iba todos los veranos a Disneylandia con mis padres. The use of the imperfect  Cuando yo era niño, yo... When I was a child, I used to eat cereal every morning.... read comic books all the time.... would go to Disneyland every summer with my parents.

Expressing the habitual (used to, would)  Pedro comía en ese restaurante todos los sábados. The use of the imperfect Pedro used to eat at that restaurant every Saturday. Of course, the imperfect is not limited to discussing childhood activities. Any habitual activities are expressed in the imperfect.  Ana iba de compras todo el tiempo. Ana used to go shopping all the time.

The imperfect expresses something that was happening at a given time, without reference to its beginning or ending: Expressing the ongoing (was... ing)  Roberto estudiaba en su cuarto.  Elena lavaba los platos en la cocina.  Ayer a eso de las cuatro yo leía el periódico mientras mi esposa miraba la tele. The use of the imperfect Roberto was studying in his room. Elena was washing the dishes in the kitchen. Yesterday around four o’clock I was reading the newspaper while my wife was watching TV.

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.  Elena lavaba los platos en la cocina cuando alguien tocó a la puerta. The use of the imperfect Expressing the ongoing (was... ing) Roberto was studying in his room when the phone rang. Elena was washing the dishes in the kitchen when someone knocked at the door.

Expressing moods, feelings, desires, and intentions  Alicia estaba contenta durante el concierto.  Nos sentíamos mal después de comer allí. The use of the imperfect Alicia was happy during the concert. We felt sick after eating there.  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.

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. The use of the imperfect 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.

Expressing indirect statements  Carlos dijo que Juan venía a mi casa a las ocho.  Los agentes afirmaron que los espías hablaban muy bien el inglés.  El volante policíaco declara que el delincuente era bajo y cojeaba un poco. The use of the imperfect Carlos said that Juan was coming to my house at eight o’clock. The agents affirmed that the spies spoke English very well. The police flyer states that the criminal was short and limped somewhat.

2.Habitual action and routines 1.Age and time of day in the past  Yo tenía treinta años cuando me casé. Overview of the use of the imperfect I was thirty years old when I got married.  Eran las tres cuando Hugo llegó. It was three o’clock when Hugo arrived.  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.

3.Ongoing action 4.Description—setting the scene or providing background information Overview of the use of the imperfect  Carlos leía el periódico mientras su hijo cortaba el césped. Carlos was reading the newspaper while his son was mowing the lawn.  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.

5.To talk about moods, feelings desires and intentions 6.Indirect statements Overview of the use of the imperfect  Estaba nervioso. I was nervous. Pancho dijo que su hermano vendía su coche. Pancho said that his brother was selling his car.  Tenía miedo de las tormentas. I was afraid of storms. I wanted to stay at home.  Quería quedarme en casa.