Imperfect Tense
The imperfect describes the past as it was going on: what used to happen (jugaba, I used to play) and what was happening (llovía, it was raining).
Taught in: A2.1 Week 3: When I Was Young
The rule at a glance
hablarinfinitive→habl-stem+-abaending (yo)=hablabaI used to speak
-ar: hablaba, hablabas, hablaba, hablábamos, hablabais, hablaban; -er/-ir: comía, comías, comía, comíamos, comíais, comían
Habits: "used to"
jugaba
I used to play
De pequeño, jugaba al fútbol todos los días.
As a child, I used to play football every day.
Background: "was -ing"
llovía
it was raining
Llovía cuando salí de casa.
It was raining when I left the house.
Only 3 irregulars
era · iba · veía
ser · ir · ver
Los domingos íbamos al parque.
On Sundays we used to go to the park.
- Imperfect or preterite? The imperfect describes what used to happen or was going on: Siempre comía pizza (I always used to eat pizza). The preterite says what happened and is finished: Ayer comí pizza. See preterite vs imperfect.
Forms
Regular verbs
Take the stem and add the ending. -er and -ir verbs share the same endings, all with an accent on the í; -ar verbs only have an accent in the nosotros form (hablábamos). There are no stem changes in the imperfect.
The highlighted part is the ending.
| hablar (to speak) | comer (to eat) | vivir (to live) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablaba – I used to speak | comía – I used to eat | vivía – I used to live |
| tú | hablabas – you used to speak | comías – you used to eat | vivías – you used to live |
| él/ella/usted | hablaba – he/she used to speak | comía – he/she used to eat | vivía – he/she used to live |
| nosotros | hablábamos – we used to speak | comíamos – we used to eat | vivíamos – we used to live |
| vosotros | hablabais – you all used to speak | comíais – you all used to eat | vivíais – you all used to live |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | hablaban – they used to speak | comían – they used to eat | vivían – they used to live |
Irregular verbs
Only three verbs are irregular in the imperfect: ser, ir and ver. Everything else follows the patterns above.
| ser (to be) | ir (to go) | ver (to see) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | era – I was | iba – I used to go | veía – I used to see |
| tú | eras – you were | ibas – you used to go | veías – you used to see |
| él/ella/usted | era – he/she was | iba – he/she used to go | veía – he/she used to see |
| nosotros | éramos – we were | íbamos – we used to go | veíamos – we used to see |
| vosotros | erais – you all were | ibais – you all used to go | veíais – you all used to see |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | eran – they were | iban – they used to go | veían – they used to see |
When to use it
1. Habits and repeated actions: "used to", "would"
Clue words: siempre, todos los días, cada semana, a menudo, a veces, nunca, de niño/a, en aquella época, generalmente.
Cuando era niño, jugaba mucho – When I was a child, I used to play a lot
Siempre comía a las dos – I always used to eat at two
Los domingos íbamos al parque – On Sundays we used to go to the park
De pequeño, veía dibujos animados – As a child, I used to watch cartoons
2. An action in progress: "was/were -ing"
Often the background to a finished action in the preterite; mientras (while) introduces it.
Mientras estudiaba, sonó el teléfono – While I was studying, the phone rang
Dormía cuando llegaste – I was sleeping when you arrived
¿Qué hacías a las tres? What were you doing at three?
Los niños jugaban en el jardín – The children were playing in the garden
3. Describing people, places and situations in the past
Llovía cuando salí – It was raining when I left
De niña tenía muchos amigos – As a girl I had a lot of friends
En aquella época vivíamos en Madrid – In those days we lived in Madrid
Mi abuela cocinaba muy bien – My grandmother used to cook very well
4. Iba a + infinitive: "was going to"
The imperfect of ir + a + infinitive: a plan or intention in the past.
Iba a llamarte, pero se me olvidó. I was going to call you, but I forgot.
Íbamos a salir cuando empezó a llover. We were going to go out when it started to rain.
¿Ibas a decir algo? Were you going to say something?
Iban a comprar una casa nueva. They were going to buy a new house.
Common mistakes
For a habit ("used to"): the imperfect
Not this (incorrect): De niño, siempre comí pizza los viernes
But this (correct): De niño, siempre comía pizza los viernes – As a child, I always used to eat pizza on Fridays. A repeated past habit takes the imperfect; a single finished action takes the preterite: Ayer comí pizza. (The preterite can also sum up a whole period, but not describe the habit.)
Leaving out the accent on -er/-ir forms
Not this (incorrect): comia, comiamos
But this (correct): comía, comíamos – I used to eat, we used to eat. Every -er/-ir form has an accent on the í.
Leaving out the accent on nosotros (-ar)
Not this (incorrect): hablabamos
But this (correct): hablábamos – we used to speak. Only the nosotros form of -ar verbs has an accent: -ábamos.
Treating ver as fully regular
Not this (incorrect): Yo vía la tele
But this (correct): Yo veía la tele – I used to watch TV. Ver keeps its e: veía, veías, veía...
Quick check
8 questions1. Complete the sentence: Cuando era niño, _____ mucho.
The imperfect 'jugaba' is correct because it describes a habitual action in the past ('used to play').
2. Choose the imperfect form: Nosotros _____ en Barcelona (de niños).
'Vivíamos' is the imperfect form for 'we used to live/were living'.
3. Which is irregular in the imperfect? The verb _____
'Ser' is one of only three irregular verbs in the imperfect tense.
4. Complete with the imperfect (background description): En aquella época ellos _____ estudiantes y vivían en un piso pequeño.
'Eran' is the imperfect of 'ser': it describes what they were like at that time, alongside 'vivían'. 'Fueron' is the preterite.
5. Select the imperfect form: Tú _____ al cine los sábados.
'Ibas' is the imperfect of 'ir' meaning 'you used to go/were going'.
6. Which sentence shows the correct use of imperfect for description?
'Era' is correct because the imperfect is used to describe how things were in the past.
7. Complete: Mientras yo _____, mi hermana estudiaba.
'Cocinaba' is correct because both actions were happening at the same time in the past.
8. Choose the correct imperfect form: Vosotros _____ la televisión cada noche.
'Veíais' is the imperfect form of 'ver' for vosotros, describing a habitual past action.
Test your understanding of the Spanish imperfect tense - regular and irregular forms:
Going further
The past progressive (estaba + gerund) and more examples
The past progressive: estaba + gerund
To stress that an action was in progress at a specific moment, use estaba (the imperfect of estar) + the gerund (-ando/-iendo). Both forms are correct; the past progressive is closer to the English "-ing".
Yo leía un libro. I was reading a book. (imperfect)
Yo estaba leyendo un libro. I was reading a book. (past progressive: stresses "in progress")
More examples
Todos los días estudiaba – Every day I used to study
Trabajaba en casa ese día – I was working at home that day
Comía todos los días a las dos – I used to eat at two every day
Siempre llegaba temprano – I always used to arrive early
Mientras leía, escuchaba música – While I was reading, I was listening to music
Cada verano íbamos a la playa – Every summer we used to go to the beach