The Imperfect: Habits

The Imperfect is one of the friendliest tenses in Spanish. Why? Because it is incredibly regular. While the Preterite tense has dozens of irregular verbs, the Imperfect only has three. Yes, you read that right. Only three! This tense describes actions that happened "back then" without a specific start or end. It translates to "used to [verb]" or "would [verb]" in English. For example, if you ate pizza every Friday, you use the Imperfect. If you lived in a small apartment during college, you use the Imperfect. It sets the stage for your stories. It provides the context for the more dramatic events in your life.

1. 1To form the Imperfect, you start with the verb's infinitive. Drop the -ar, -er, or -ir ending. Then, add the specific Imperfect endings.
2. 2For -ar verbs, the endings all start with "b".
3. 3yo -aba
4. 4tú -abas
5. 5él/ella/usted -aba
6. 6nosotros -ábamos (Note the accent!)
7. 7vosotros -abais
8. 8ellos/ellas/ustedes -aban
9. 9For -er and -ir verbs, the endings are identical. They all have an accent on the "i".
10. 10yo -ía
11. 11tú -ías
12. 12él/ella/usted -ía
13. 13nosotros -íamos
14. 14vosotros -íais
15. 15ellos/ellas/ustedes -ían
16. 16Memorize the only three irregulars: ser (era), ir (iba), and ver (veía). That is it! Your brain can finally relax a little bit.

Use the Imperfect for repeated actions in the past. If you did it more than once, it is likely a habit. Use it to describe your childhood routine. "I used to play in the park" is Yo jugaba en el parque. Use it for descriptions like weather, age, or emotions. If you were 10 years old, you say Tenía diez años. If the sun was shining during your job interview, use Hacía sol. It is perfect for telling someone about your old job. "I used to drink five coffees a day" is Tomaba cinco cafés al día. It also works for telling time in the past. "It was two o'clock" becomes Eran las dos.

Do not use the Imperfect for one-time events. If you did it once and it finished, use the Preterite. For example, "I bought a car yesterday" is not a habit. That is a single action. Do not use it for specific time frames with clear endings. "I lived there for three years" usually takes the Preterite because you defined the limit. Think of it like a grammar traffic light. The Preterite is a red light (stop/finished). The Imperfect is a yellow light (slowing down/continuing). If you can count exactly how many times it happened, avoid the Imperfect.

Many people forget the accent on the nosotros form of -ar verbs. It is jugábamos, not jugabamos. Another common slip is mixing up the -ía and -aba endings. Remember: -ar verbs get the "b", and -er/-ir verbs get the "i". Also, don't try to make every verb irregular. Students often think tener or hacer must be weird. Nope! They are perfectly regular: tenía and hacía. Finally, watch out for the yo and él/ella forms. They are identical in this tense. Context is your best friend here to avoid confusion.

The biggest rival of the Imperfect is the Preterite. The Preterite is for the "what happened" part of the story. The Imperfect is for the "how things were" part. If you say Comí una manzana, you ate it and you are done. If you say Comía una manzana, you were in the middle of eating it, or you did it every day. Think of the Preterite as a photo and the Imperfect as a video. The Preterite interrupts the Imperfect. "I was sleeping (dormía) when the phone rang (sonó)." One is the background, the other is the action.