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Understanding the Preterite and Imperfect Tenses in Spanish

In Spanish, the preterite and imperfect tenses express past actions but serve different purposes. The preterite indicates actions that started and ended at a specific time, such as "Viajé a Costa Rica el verano pasado" (I traveled to Costa Rica last summer). In contrast, the imperfect describes ongoing actions without indicating when they begin or end, exemplified by "Todos dormían" (Everybody was sleeping). This guide explains how and when to use these two forms, including their application in storytelling and background contexts.

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Understanding the Preterite and Imperfect Tenses in Spanish

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  1. Using the preterite and imperfect tenses!!!

  2. Now that we know two forms used for the past tense, the preteriteand theimperfect. Let’s look at how each is used.

  3. The preterite tells you about an action that started and ended at a definite time. • Viajé a Costa Rica el verano pasado. • I traveled to Costa Rica last year. • Viví en España un año. • I lived in Spain one year. • Comieron una pizza anoche. • They ate a pizza last night.

  4. The imperfect tells about past actions without saying when they begin or end. “Was+ing and Were+ing” • Todo el mundo dormía. • Everybody was sleeping. • La chica cantaba. • The girl was singing. • Mi padre trabajaba en el banco todos los días. • My father worked in the bank everyday. Other Imperfect uses: The sentences don’t tell you when the action started and ended. Also, with age, time, weather, and background events of a story.

  5. A las dos anoche mi hermana (cenó, cenaba) con una amiga. • Los hombres (miraron, miraban) una película. • Ayer yo (hice, hacía) la tarea a las cinco por la noche. • Nosotros (bailamos, bailábamos) en la discoteca Mariela todos los viernes. • Mi abuela siempre(trepó, trepaba) a los árboles. • Tú (tuviste, tenías) catorce años cuando eras el mejor jugador de baloncesto. Práctica

  6. A las dos anoche mi hermana (cenó, cenaba) con una amiga. • Los hombres (miraron, miraban) una película. • Ayer yo (hice, hacía) la tarea a las cinco por la noche. • Nosotros (bailamos, bailábamos) en la discoteca Mariela todos los viernes. • Mi abuela siempre(trepó, trepaba) a los árboles. • Tú (tuviste, tenías) catorce años cuando eras el mejor jugador de baloncesto. Respuestas

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