Gramática: El imperfecto regular

Two illustrated people hold a set of rotating arrows indicating a repeat

What is the imperfect tense? The Spanish imperfect tense (el imperfecto) is used to describe past habitual actions or to talk about what someone was doing when they were interrupted by something else. The tense is used for past actions that are not seen as completed. The use of the imperfect tense implies that the past action did not have a definite beginning or a definite end. The imperfect tells when, in general, an action occurred.

The image at the top of the lesson represents this idea with the two arrows set up in a symbol indicating repeated action.

General Uses of the Imperfect

Background for another past action
- Yo trablajaba cuando llegó mi padre.
Telling time
- Eran las dos le la tarde.
Actions that were not completed
- Ella cantaba.
Habitual actions
- Yo jubaba al béisbol todos los días.
Describing the past
- Era un hombre alto.
Age
- Tenía dieciséis años.

Clues to Help You

When deciding whether or not to use the imperfect, keep in mind it is usually associated with clues/phrases that describe the frequency of past actions which will help you in your selection. These clues refer to and/or describe the frequency of past actions

The following is a partial list of the most commonly used phrases in Spanish that signal the use of the "Imperfect".

a menudo: often
a veces: sometimes
cada año: every year
cada día: every day
con frecuencia: frequently
constantemente: constantly
de vez en cuando: from time to time
en aquella época: at that time
frecuentemente: frequently
generalmente: usually
muchas veces: many times
mucho: a lot
nunca: never
por un rato: for a while
siempre: always
tantas veces: so many times
todas las semanas: every week
todo el tiempo: all the time
todos los días: every day
varias veces: several times

Video Lesson: El imperfecto regular

View the presentations below which introduce the conjugations of additional past tense in Spanish called the imperfect. Note the accents! Take notes as you view the material as you will be responsible for the content. Be sure your speakers are turned up!

Please view this video on imperfect tense below.

Video Lessons: More About Regular Verbs in the Imperfect Tense

After watching the introduction video on the Imperfect tense, below you will find further explanations broken down into sections to help make this easier to understand. Be sure to watch go through each tab to watch all the videos!

The following videos are courtesy of Sr. Jordan (used with permission, all rights reserved)

El imperfect: -AR Verbs
El imperfect: -ER/-IR Verbs
El imperfect: Songs!

Imperfect -AR Verbs

Imperfect Regular -ER and -IR Verbs

Check out this video on imperfect regular -er and -ir verbs.

Here are two videos help you remember verbs in the imperfect tense with music.

Regular AR Verbs in Imperfect Song!

Regular -ER and -IR Verbs in Imperfect Song!

Practice Activity: Regular Verbs in the Imperfect Tense

Complete the activity using the regular imperfect to reflect on the presentations you just viewed. A chart is provided to help you decide on the correct verb form for each item in the activity.

Keep in mind there are no stem changes in the imperfect tense, and había is the imperfect form of hay (the infinitive form is haber).

**Regular Imperfect Endings**
Pronouns	-AR Verbs	-ER/-IR Verbs
yo	aba	ía
tú	abas	ías
él/ella/usted (Ud.)	aba	ía
nosotros/as	ábamos	íamos
vosotros/as	abais	íais
ellos/ellas/ustedes (Uds.)	aban	ían

Regular Imperfect Activity

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