WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PRETERITE AND IMPERFECT?
Preterite vs Imperfect: Part I
Spanish has two past tenses: preterite and imperfect. Most verbs can be put into either
tense, depending upon the meaning. In this lesson, you will learn to conjugate regular -ar
verbs in the preterite and the imperfect. You will also learn the basic difference between
the preterite and the imperfect, so that you can begin using them correctly.
To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the preterite, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following:
é
aste
ó
amos
asteis
aron
To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the imperfect, simply drop the
ending (-ar) and add one of the following:
aba
abas
aba
ábamos
abais
aban
Compare the verb hablar conjugated in the preterite and the imperfect.
| Preterite |
Imperfect |
| |
|
| hablé |
hablaba |
| hablaste |
hablabas |
| habló |
hablaba |
| hablamos |
hablábamos |
| hablasteis |
hablabais |
| hablaron |
hablaban |
Generally speaking, the preterite is used for actions in the past that are seen as completed.
Use of the preterite tense implies that the past action had a definite beginning and definite end.
Juan habló dos horas.
Juan spoke two hours.
(clearly stated beginning and end)
It is important to realize that the beginning and the end may not always be clearly stated.
Juan habló con la estudiante.
Juan spoke with the student.
(implied beginning and end)
Generally speaking, the imperfect is used for actions in the past that are not seen as completed. Use of the imperfect tense implies that the past action did not have a definite beginning or a definite end.
Las chicas hablaban en inglés.
The girls used to speak in English.
(no definite beginning or end)
You have now learned the basic difference between the preterite and the imperfect:
The preterite tells us specifically when an action took place.
The imperfect tells us in general when an action took place.
Note: Although this difference may appear simple, this is actually a complex topic, and you will learn the finer points in later lessons.
Preterite vs Imperfect: Part II
Remember, Spanish has two past tenses: preterite and imperfect. Most verbs can be put into either tense, depending upon the meaning. The preterite tells us specifically when an action took place. The imperfect tells us in general when an action took place.
Some words and phrases indicate specific time frames, and therefore signal the use of the preterite.
ayer
(yesterday)
anteayer
(the day before yesterday)
anoche
(last night)
desde el primer momento
(from the first moment)
durante dos siglos
(for two centuries)
el otro día
(the other day)
en ese momento
(at that moment)
entonces
(then)
esta mañana
(this morning)
esta tarde
(this afternoon)
la semana pasada
(last week)
el mes pasado
(last month)
el año pasado
(last year)
hace dos días, años
(two days, years ago)
ayer por la mañana
(yesterday morning)
ayer por la tarde
(yesterday afternoon)
Other words and phrases indicate repetitive, vague or non-specific time frames, and therefore signal the use of the imperfect.
a menudo
(often)
a veces
(sometimes)
cada día
(every day)
cada semana
(every week)
cada mes
(every month)
cada año
(every year)
con frecuencia
(frequently)
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 awhile)
siempre
(always)
tantas veces
(so many times)
todas las semanas
(every week)
todos los días
(every day)
todo el tiempo
(all the time)
varias veces
(several times)
Some of these are more obvious than others. The sure-fire way to learn these is to
practice, practice, practice!
Remember these phrases specifically. They'll help you know when
the PRETERITE is coming up, and when the IMPERFECT is coming up:
Expressions that signal use of preterite
ayer
(yesterday) |
la
semana pasada
(last week) |
anoche
(last night) |
el
mes pasado
(last month) |
el
otro día
(the other day) |
el
año pasado
(last year) |
entonces
(then) |
hace
dos días, años
(two days, years ago) |
esta
mañana
(this morning) |
ayer
por la mañana
(yesterday morning) |
- Expressions that signal use of imperfect
a
menudo
(often) |
generalmente
(usually) |
a
veces
(sometimes) |
muchas
veces
(many times) |
cada
día
(every day) |
siempre
(always) |
cada
año
(every year) |
todo
el tiempo
(all the time) |
de
vez en cuando
(from time to time) |
varias
veces
(several times) |
Preterite vs Imperfect: Part III
You have already learned that the preterite and the imperfect are used in different situations. The preterite is used for actions that are viewed as completed, while the imperfect is used for actions that did not have a definite beginning or a definite end.
Estudié dos horas.
I studied two hours.
(completed action)
Yo estudiaba antes de los exámenes.
I used to study before the tests.
(no definite beginning or end)
Some verbs actually change meaning, depending upon whether they are used in the preterite or the imperfect. This is not surprising, since the difference in meaning can be traced back to the different way in which these two past tenses are used.
conocer
Conocí a Juan hace cinco años.
I met Juan five years ago.
(completed action)
En aquella época conocíamos muy bien la ciudad.
At that time we knew the city very well.
(no definite beginning or end)
querer
María quiso comprar la casa.
Maria tried to buy the house.
(completed action)
Juan quería comprar la casa.
Juan wanted to buy the house.
(no definite beginning or end)
no querer
María no quiso comprar la casa.
Maria refused to buy the house.
(completed action)
Juan no quería comprar la casa.
Juan did not want to buy the house.
(no definite beginning or end)
saber
María lo supo ayer.
Maria found out yesterday.
(completed action)
Juan sabía que María venía.
Juan knew that Maria was coming.
(no definite beginning or end)
poder
María pudo levantar la mesa.
Maria succeeded in lifting the table.
(completed action)
Juan podía participar en la manifestación.
Juan was able to participate in the demonstration.
(no definite beginning or end)
tener
María tuvo una carta de su mamá.
Maria received a letter from her mom.
(completed action)
Juan tenía un coche nuevo.
Juan used to have a new car.
(no definite beginning or end)
(courtesy: www.studyspanish.com)
IR A and TENER QUE
These aren't really anything new, as long as you already know what they mean.
IR goes to iba, ibas, iba... in the imperfect tense.
The only shade of meaning here that you need to be aware of is that,
when you use IBA A + verb for "I was going to do something", you have to
realize that it IMPLIES that you DIDN'T GET THE THING DONE.
TENER QUE has the same implication, in the Imperfect...
ex: Iba a estudiar, pero fui a la fiesta. (I was going to study, but I went to the party.)
ex: Ibas a pasar por mi casa anoche, ¿no? (You were going to come by my house last night, right?)
ex: Ayer, tenía que trabajar, pero me dormí. (Yesterday, I had to work, but I fell asleep.)
ex: Teníamos que tener un examen hoy... (We had to have an exam today... but didn't.)
However, when you use TENER QUE in the PRETERITE tense,
it implies that you HAD to do the thing, and you DID do it.
ex: Tuve que estudiar mucho anoche. (I had to study a lot last night.)
ex: Tuvieron que salir para Florida de repente. (They had to leave for Florida suddenly.)
SABER and CONOCER
SABER = to know facts, information, how to do something
sabía = I knew supe = I found out
sabías = you knew supiste = you found out
sabía = she/he knew supo = she/he found out
sabía = you (Ud.) knew supo = you (Ud.) found out
sabíamos = we knew supimos = we found out
sabíais = y'all knew supisteis = y'all found out
sabían = you all (Uds.)knew supieron = you all (Uds.) found out
sabían = they knew supieron = they found out
CONOCER = to know a person, to be acquainted with a person, place or thing;
to meet (for the first time)
conocía = I knew conocí = I met
conocías = you knew conociste = you met
conocía = she/he knew conoció = she/he met
conocía = you (Ud.) knew conoció = you (Ud.) met
conocíamos = we knew conocimos = we met
conocíais = y'all knew conocisteis = y'all met
conocían = they knew conocieron = they met
conocían = you all (Uds.) knew conocieron = you all (Uds.) met
Things like this are simply rote memorization. Flash card time!
In both Spanish and English, past participles can come in quite handy. Not only can
they be used as parts of verbs (and not just for speaking about the past),
they can also be used to create adjectives.
The past participles in the two languages have similar origins, so they are not
only similar in function, but also vaguely similar in the way they are formed.
In English, the past participle for regular verbs is formed by adding "-ed" to
the end. In Spanish, the past participle for regular verbs is formed by adding
-ado to the stem of -ar verbs or -ido to thhe stem of -er or -ir verbs.
To use a few examples of words that are similar in both languages, the past participle
of "to select" is "selected," and the past participle of seleccionar is seleccionado.
The past participle of "to exert" is "exerted"; the Spanish equivalents are ejercer and
ejercido. And just as the past participle of "to confuse" is "confused," the past participle
of confundir is confundido.
Unfortunately for the learner, both languages have a fair number of irregular past participles
that don't always seem logical, and these need to be learned individually. (Examples of irregular
English participles are "broken," "said" and "gone.") Among the common Spanish irregular participles
are abierto ("opened," from abrir, "to open"), dicho ("said," from decir, "to say"), escrito ("written,"
from escribir, "to write"), hecho ("done" or "made," from hacer, "to make" or "to do"), puesto ("put,"
from poner, "to put") and visto ("seen," from ver, "to see").
Passive sentences: Just as the passive voice in English can be formed by following "to be"
with a past participle, the same can be done in Spanish by using a form of ser followed by
the past participle. This construction should not be overused, as it is much less common in
Spanish than in English, and it is even less common in speech than in writing. As the examples
below show, the passive voice is a way of showing that a noun was acted upon without directly
saying who or what performed the action.
In such sentences, the past participle functions like an adjective in that it agrees with
the subject in both number and gender.
Examples:
Fue descubierto. (It was discovered.)
Fueron descubiertos. (They were discovered.)
El libro será publicado. (The book will be published.)
La canción será grabada. (The song will be recorded.)
Los niños serán vistos. (The children will be seen.)
Las niñas serán vistas. (The girls will be seen.)
(courtesy: spanish.about.com)
Also, take note of page 306 of the text, which tells how to use ESTAR with
these past participles.