Conjugating Spanish Indicative Imperfect Verbs

Conjugating Spanish Indicative Imperfect Verbs As one of Spanishs two simple past tenses, the imperfect indicative has a conjugation that is essential to learn. It is the verb form used most often to describe conditions as they existed in the past, to provide background to events, and to describe habitual actions. Using Estudiar as an Example Conjugation As with some other conjugation forms, the imperfect indicative forms are made by removing the infinitive ending of the verb (-ar, -er or -ir) and replacing it with an ending that indicates who is performing the action of the verb. For example, the infinitive form of the verb that means to study is estudiar. Its infinitive ending is -ar, leaving the stem of estudi-. To say I was studying, add -aba to the stem, forming estudiaba. To say you were studying (singular informal), add -abas to the stem, forming estudiabas. Other forms exist for other persons. (Note: In this lesson, the forms was studying, was learning and so on are used to translate the imperfect indicative. Other translations also could be used, such as used to study or even studied. The translation used depends on the context.) The endings are quite different for verbs that end in -er and -ir, but the principle is the same. Remove the infinitive ending, then add the appropriate ending to the remaining stem. List of Conjugations for the Imperfect Tense The following chart shows the conjugations for each of the three infinitive types. The added endings for each verb are indicated in boldface. The pronouns, often not needed in sentences, are included here for clarity. -Ar verbs using lavar  (to clean) as an example: yo lavaba (I was cleaning)tà º lavabas (you were cleaning)à ©l/ella/usted lavaba (he was cleaning, she was cleaning, you were cleaning)nosotros/nosotras lavbamos (we were cleaning)vosotros/vosotras lavabais (you were cleaning)ellos/ellas/ustedes lavaban (they were cleaning, you were cleaning) -Er verbs using aprender (to learn) as an example: yo aprendà ­a (I was learning)tà º aprendà ­as (you were learning)à ©l/ella/usted aprendà ­a (he was learning, she was learning, you were learning)nosotros/nosotras aprendà ­amos (we were learning)vosotros/vosotras aprendà ­ais (you were learning)ellos/ellas/ustedes aprendà ­an (they were learning, you were learning) -Ir verbs using escribir (to write) as an example: yo escribà ­a (I was writing)tà º escribà ­as (you were writing)à ©l/ella/usted escribà ­a (he was writing, she was writing, you were writing)nosotros/nosotras escribà ­amos (we were writing)vosotros/vosotras escribà ­ais (you were writing)ellos/ellas/ustedes escribà ­an (they were writing, you were writing) As you may notice, the -er and -ir verbs follow the same pattern in the imperfect indicative. Also, the first- and third-person singular forms (the I and he/she/it/you forms) are the same. Thus estudiaba could mean I was studying, he was studying, she was studying or you were studying. If the context doesnt otherwise indicate, a pronoun or subject noun is used before the verb in such cases to indicate who is performing the action. Irregular Verbs Only three verbs (and the verbs derived from them, such as prever) are irregular in the imperfect tense: Ir (to go): yo iba (I was going)tà º ibas (you were going)à ©l/ella/usted iba (he was going, she was going, you were going)nosotros/nosotras à ­bamos (we were going)vosotros/vosotras ibis (you were going)ellos/ellas/ustedes iban (they were going, you were going) Ser (to be): yo era (I was)tà º eras (you were)à ©l/ella/usted era (he was, she was, you were)nosotros/nosotras à ©ramos (we were)vosotros/vosotras erais (you were)ellos/ellas/ustedes eran (they were, you were) Ver (to see): yo veà ­a (I was seeing)tà º veà ­as (you were seeing)à ©l/ella/usted veà ­a (he was seeing, she was seeing, you were seeing)nosotros/nosotras veà ­amos (we were seeing)vosotros/vosotras veà ­ais (you were seeing)ellos/ellas/ustedes veà ­an (they were seeing, you were seeing) Sample Sentences: Llamà ³ a la policà ­a mientras yo compraba drogas. (She called the police while I was buying drugs.)Asà ­ vestà ­amos hace 100 aà ±os. (This is how we dressed 100 years ago.)Se saturaba el aire con olores. (The air was saturated with odors.) ¿Quà © hacà ­an los famosos antes de convertirse en estrellas? (What did the famous people do before they became stars?)Estaba claro que no querà ­ais otra cosa. (It was clear you didnt want another thing.)  Creo que todos eran inocentes. (I believe all were innocent.)En Buenos Aires comprbamos los regalos de Navidad. (We bought Christmas gifts in Buenos Aires.)Los indà ­genas vivà ­amos en un estado de infrahumanidad. (We indigenous people lived a state of subhumanity.)