Spanish imperfect tense for English speakers
Vocalyra teaching team · Last updated:
English uses several expressions for the past: I used to walk, I was walking, and sometimes simply I walked. Spanish imperfect often covers the first two ideas, but it does not describe every completed past event.
Build the imperfect without guessing from English
For regular -ar verbs, remove -ar and add -aba, -abas, -aba, -ábamos, -abais, -aban. For -er and -ir verbs, use -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían. Thus hablaba means I was speaking or I used to speak, while comíamos means we were eating or we used to eat. Only ser (era), ir (iba), and ver (veía) have irregular imperfect stems. The same third-person singular form can mean he, she, or formal you; the subject and surrounding story decide.
Use it for habits, descriptions, and the background
Picture a childhood memory: Cuando era niño, vivía cerca del mar y jugaba allí cada tarde. The verbs describe a continuing situation and a repeated activity, not a single finished visit. Weather, time, age, feelings, and ongoing situations also often set a scene: Hacía frío y eran las ocho. A sudden action can interrupt that background: Dormía cuando sonó el teléfono. Dormía describes what was in progress; sonó marks the event that happened.
An English-to-Spanish decision that prevents errors
English I walked to school can mean a routine or one particular journey. Spanish usually forces you to make that distinction: Caminaba a la escuela cada día (habit) versus Caminé a la escuela ayer (one completed trip). Do not mechanically translate every English was + -ing with the imperfect; estaba caminando highlights the action in progress more explicitly. Likewise, used to is often a good clue, but context is stronger than a single English phrase.
Practise with a miniature story
Write two sentences about where you lived at age ten, then add one event that changed the scene. For example, Vivíamos en un pueblo pequeño. Un día llegó mi tío. Say why the first verb is background and the second is a completed arrival. When reading a Spanish story, circle repeated-time markers such as siempre, de pequeño, and cada verano, but remember that a time marker alone cannot replace understanding the event.
| Spanish | Natural English | Why |
|---|---|---|
| De niña leía mucho. | As a child I read a lot. | Past habit |
| Llovía cuando salimos. | It was raining when we left. | Background + event |
| Íbamos al parque. | We used to go to the park. | Repeated activity |
| Eran las nueve. | It was nine o’clock. | Setting the scene |
Quick self-check: if your sentence describes what things were like or what people habitually did, the imperfect is a strong candidate. If it moves the story forward with one bounded event, check the preterite.
Quick self-check
Complete: De niño, yo ___ (hablar) mucho.
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hablaba
Complete: nosotros (comer) juntos cada domingo.
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comíamos
Choose for a repeated habit: fui / iba al colegio cada día.
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iba
Complete: Hacía frío cuando el tren (llegar) ayer.
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llegó
Name the three imperfect verbs with irregular stems.
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ser, ir, ver