In this post, I will guide you when to use the preterite vs imperfect in Spanish along with the basic conjugations. The Spanish preterite vs. imperfect comparison is demonstrated in the Penlighten article below. Mind you, no cheating! To say it was hot, use hacía mucho, calor not hizo mucho calor. There are several general rules you can follow to know when to use one tense or another. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. There are few irregulars and please see the chart below: The imperfect tense expresses either continuous actions or states that occurred in the past. (My father read the paper every morning. All Rights Reserved. Judging the situation, you have to decide whether you need to use the imperfect form or the preterite form. Hopefully, this will give you an advantage when distinguishing the preterite vs imperfect tense in Spanish. (The movie began at 8:00. By, Sep 27, 2016 / It is also used to refer to any general, vague instance in the past, and not something that has a specific time of occurrence. ), Lavaste los platos hace dos horas. Use of the preterite tense implies that the past action had a definite beginning and definite end. It is commonly used with habits and descriptions. If you want to say what is was going on or background events, use imperfect. When reading or listening to Spanish, you can use context clues to figure out whether a verb phrase is in the preterite or imperfect tense. (While I was working, my grandson entered. Let’s add two more flashcards, one for regular -ar preterite, and one for regular -ar imperfect: -aron (I was dancing when my friend entered the room.). 1. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Que era Viernes, 12 de marzo , cuatro de la tarde. 69% average accuracy. In this sentence, the action of buying the shoes is complete, and has occurred at a specific, definite time. You will also learn the basic difference between the preterite and the imperfect, so that you can begin using them correctly. ), un lunar en la mejilla. Probably not very often! Luckily, the imperfect tense is much easier to conjugate than the preterite tense. Yo leí el libro - I read the book (and now I'm done). Subjunctive III: Verbs that change orthographically, 83. Links to quizzes, tests, etc. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Terms of Service & Privacy Policy, “We were swimming when it started to rain.”, “They had been eating for thirty minutes already when I got there.”. Yo estaba esperando en la facturación cuando me caí . (Esther had a mole on her cheek. To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the preterite, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following: To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the imperfect, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following: Compare the verb “hablar” conjugated in the preterite and the imperfect. In this lesson, you will learn to conjugate regular -ar verbs in the preterite and the imperfect. ), Subscribe to get your free ebook “Simplifying the Subjunctive”. Spanish is one of the very few languages in the world having a complicated, yet interesting set of grammar rules. Compare the translations of these sentences in the preterite versus in the imperfect: (They already found out about the movie. (It was 3:00 p.m.), Era la cuatro de la mañana. I was walking downtown when I ran into my best friend's brother. (Esther had a mole on her cheek.). ), cantando. "block"; 51. Story-telling is an excellent form of practicing verb tenses. With some practice, this is fairly easy to remember. Start quiz now. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. World Languages. When you use the preterite, it also implies that the action had a definite beginning and a definite end.

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