Preterite vs imperfect the Spanish past tense…. preteriteimperfect  backbone of the story  moves things forward  tells when things began and ended.

Presentación del tema: "Preterite vs imperfect the Spanish past tense…. preteriteimperfect  backbone of the story  moves things forward  tells when things began and ended."— Transcripción de la presentación:

1 preterite vs imperfect the Spanish past tense…

2 preteriteimperfect  backbone of the story  moves things forward  tells when things began and ended  moves the story forward in time  descriptive filler  flesh of the story  does not introduce new events  stops the story to fill in details and descriptions

3 Picture It preterite (events) imperfect (details/descriptions)

4 preteriteimperfect  he woke up  he ate breakfast  he brushed his teeth  he left the house  he arrived at school  these are all specific events  it was sunny  he was hungry  he was happy  the toothpaste was blue  his friend was waiting  these are all details/descriptions

5 some more pictures that may help you… beginning _________ _ _ _ _ _ _ end _ _ _ _ _ ___________ beginning and end _______________ middle _ _ _ _ _ _ _________ _ _ _ _ _ preterite imperfect

6 verb of action 1. Is it a verb of action? 2. Is the action…  habitual?  interrupted?  descriptive? yes to any = use imperfect no to all = use preterite

7 verb of action  preterite is the rule  imperfect is the exception use preterite if the action is the beginning or the end, or if the action is completed use imperfect if the focus is on the middle of the acion or if the action is habitual, interrupted, or descriptive

8 verb of state  imperfect is the rule  preterite is the action use imperfect if there is no change, action, reaction, or time limitation use preterite if there is a sudden change, reaction, or time limitation

9 copy down these examples to know when to use the preterite 1. De repente ella empezó a llorar. 2. Hoy me levanté a las ocho y media. 3. Ellos durmieron muy bien anoche. 4. Yo hablaba por teléfono cuando mi padre gritó.

10 copy these examples and study them to know when to use the imperfect 1. Maria y Juan se ve í an todos los martes. 2. Yo quería ir a Puerto Rico. 3. Yo tenía trece anos cuando fui a Nevada. 4. Ella tenía calor en la casa. 5. Nosotros charlábamos mientras ellos contaban chistes.