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Verbos: Pretérito vs Imperfecto

Why do you want to know this?

The preterite and imperfect express the past in different ways, adding a lot of nuance to what we really mean to say. Using the preterite and imperfect correctly allows us to be more precise when we tell stories about the past. Those who have learned Spanish at home have less trouble with the preterite and the imperfect than those who have learned Spanish in a classroom, but those who learned it in a classroom can usually explain why you use one or the other, whereas those who learned Spanish at home just use them because “they sound good.” Knowing the rules and practicing can help us when we have doubts on which to use.

1. ¿Cuándo uso cada cual? 

When do we use the preterite?

  • Single, completed actions that took place at specific points in time

    • Ayer jugué con mi vecino

    • Juan llegó temprano (I would know when based on context)

    • Mi madre me preparó el desayuno  (I would know when based on context)

When do we use the imperfect?

  • Repeated, Usual, Habitual Actions

    • Los sábados yo jugaba con mi vecino

    • Usualmente Juan llegaba temprano

  • Background Information

    • La ciudad era vieja y sucia.

    • La sirenita se llamaba Ariel y tenía seis hermanas.

  • Times and Ages

    • Isabel tenía ocho años.

    • Era la una de la mañana.

  • Ongoing Actions

    • Rosa hacía su tarea a las 9:00.

    • Yo dibujaba el lunes por la mañana.

 

*Words such as “siempre,” “frecuentemente,” “generalmente,” “nunca” “siempre,” usualmente,” etc, can clue us into the fact that we should use the imperfect.

 

Translating the Imperfect

Because in English we only have one past tense conjugation, we often have to resort to adding words to get our exact meaning across. In Spanish we would know based on context.

Yo caminaba los domingos =

    • I walked on Sundays.
    • I would walk on Sundays.
    • I used to walk on Sundays.

2. How do we conjugate the preterite? 

 

 

AR

ER

IR

Yo

canté

comí

viví

cantaste

comiste

viviste

Él/ Ella/ Usted

cantó

comió

vivió

Nosotros 

cantamos

comimos

vivimos

Ellos/ Ellas/ Ustedes

cantaron

comieron

vivieron

Some things to remember: 

 

  • Use the accent mark for “yo” and “él/ella/ud.” every time!

  • There are verbs that change their root or spelling in the preterite. You can always consult a dictionary or this verb conjugator to find answers. 

 

3. How do we conjugate the imperfect? 

 

 

AR

ER

IR

Yo

cantaba

comía

vivía

cantabas

comías

vivías

Él/ Ella/ Usted

cantaba

comía

vivía

Nosotros 

cantábamos

comíamos

vivíamos

Ellos/ Ellas/ Ustedes

cantaban

comían

vivían

Some things to remember: 

 

  • Use the accent mark every time with ER and IR verbs!

  • There are verbs that change their root or spelling in the imperfect. You can always consult a dictionary or this verb conjugator to find answers. 

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4. Differences in meaning

In many instances when talking about the past we can use the preterite or the imperfect but it will change the meaning.

 

I can say “Juan llegaba temprano” or “Juan llegó temprano,” they just mean different things. The first one means he used to arrive early, the second one means he arrived early. 

 

While in the case above “llegar” means to arrive in both tenses, there are other verbs that change meaning! For example:

 

Preterite

Imperfect

Conocí = I met for the first time

Conocía Ana = I met Ana

Conocía = I knew

Conocía a Ana = I knew Ana

Pude = I managed to

Pude salir = I managed to leave

Podía = I was able to

Podía salir = I was able to leave

No pude = I failed

No pude terminar = I failed to finish

No podía = I was not able

No podía terminar = I was not able to finish

Quise = I tried

Quise hablar = I tried to speak

Quería = I wanted to

Quería hablar = I wanted to speak

No quise = I refused

No quise leer = I refused to read

No quería = I didn’t want

No quería leer = I didn’t want to read

Supe = I found out

Supe la razón = I found out the reason

Sabía = I knew

I knew the reason

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5. Both together

It’s not at all uncommon to have both preterite and imperfect conjugations in the same sentence. In fact, it happens a lot. The imperfect is used to explain what was happening when a preterite action occurred:

  • Los perros dormían cuando Carlos entró.
  • The dogs were sleeping when Carlos entered.
  • Cuando llegaron al restaurante hacía calor.
  • When they got to the restaurant the weather was hot.
  • Yo me caí mientras corríamos
  • I fell while we were running.

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This unit “Pretérito vs. Imperfecto” was created by Alegría Ribadeneira by combining original material and sections about verbs from Spanish411.net, licensed CC BY-NC-SA and Spanish Grammar Manual by Enrique Yépez licensed  CC BY-NC-SA.