O
EL IMPERFECTO
USES OF THE PRETERITE
Simple,isolated action that is totally
completed in the past (happened
once)
Beginning or end of action
Happened a specific number of times
Happened at or during a specific time
Main action or event
MOVED THE STORY FORWARD
COMMON EXPRESSIONS USING
PRETERITE
Entonces Anoche
De La semana
momento
Aquella semana pasada
El 25 de julio
Anteayer
De repente
En febrero
Por fin
El lunes
Una noche
Una vez Durante
Preterite Formation
Regular verbs Irregular verbs
(no “rules”, you must memorize them)
cantar ser/ir
beber tener
vivir dormir
the past
◦ Verbs like: saber, conocer, querer, creer,
estar, and tener are usually imperfect
Backgroundinformation
DOESN’T MOVE THE STORY FORWARD
COMMON EXPRESSIONS WITH THE
IMPERFECT
Generalmente De costumbre
Constantemente A menudo
Siempre A veces
Con frecuencia
Frecuentemente
Por lo general
Normalmente
Regularmente
Todas las tardes De vez en
Cada semana
cuando
Imperfect Formation
Regulares Irregulares
escuchar ir
tú escuchabas tú ibas
vivir ser
tú vivías tú eras
beber ver
tú bebías tú veías
In a long narrative.
◦ The part that seems to be descriptive,
background info is imperfect, while actions and
specific events are preterite.
Practice
song.