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Beginner Spanish Deluxe > 2.5 Lesson > Flashcards

2.5 Lesson Flashcards

The imperfect (past) verb tense, and the verb ACABAR ("to have just")

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1
Q

What is the imperfect tense in Spanish?

A

The imperfect tense describes an action that could have occurred more than once over a span of time, with no specific beginning or ending. Examples:

  • An unspecified amount of time –> De joven, quería un carro, “When I was young, I wanted a car”
  • An indefinite number of occurrences, such as a habit or custom –> Desayunaba todos los días con mi hermano, “I used to eat breakfast every day with my brother”
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2
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I used to walk to school every day

A

Yo caminaba a la escuela todos los días

I used to walk - caminaba. Note that -ar verbs in the imperfect tense first person singular (yo) end in -aba

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3
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Did you used to walk to Pepe’s house every night?

A

¿Caminabas a la casa de Pepe todas las noches?

you used to walk - caminabas

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4
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Marta used to walk every weekend until she hurt her leg

A

Marta caminaba todos los fines de semana hasta que se lastimó la pierna

he/she used to walk - caminaba

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5
Q

Translate to Spanish.

We used to walk alone every day

A

Caminábamos solos todos los días

we used to walk - caminábamos

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6
Q

Translate to Spanish.

You (vosotros) used to walk down this road every day

A

Vosotros caminabais por esta calle todos los días

you (vosotros) used to walk - caminabais

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6
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Raúl and Rodrigo were walking on the street when I came out of my house

A

Raúl y Rodrigo estaban caminando en la calle cuando yo salí de mi casa

was/were + __ing - estar (imperfect) + participle. This combination is known as the imperfect progressive tense

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7
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Esteban didn’t realize that I was bathing when he entered the bathroom

A

Esteban no se dió cuenta de que me estaba bañando cuando él entró en el baño

to realize, to notice - darse cuenta (de). This literally means “to give oneself count of”

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8
Q

Translate to Spanish.

TO WALK (Imperfect)

  • I used to walk
  • You used to walk
  • He/She used to walk
  • We used to walk
  • You used to walk
  • They used to walk
A

CAMINAR (Tiempo Imperfecto)

  • Yo caminaba
  • Tú caminabas
  • Él/Ella/Ud caminaba
  • Nosotros caminábamos
  • Vosotros caminabais
  • Ellos/Ellas/Uds caminaban
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9
Q

What are the endings of regular -ar verbs (such as caminar) conjugated in the Imperfect Tense?

A

Regular Imperfect -ar endings

  • -aba (yo)
  • -abas (tú)
  • -aba (él/ella/ud)
  • -ábamos (nosotros)
  • -abais (vosotros)
  • -aban (ellos/ellas/uds)
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10
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I used to eat with my grandparents every weekend

A

Comía con mis abuelos todos los fines de semana

I used to eat - comía. Comer is a regular -er verb in the imperfect

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11
Q

Translate to Spanish.

You used to eat chicken with rice every Tuesday afternoon

A

Comías pollo con arroz todos los martes por la tarde

you used to eat - comías

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12
Q

Translate to Spanish.

When Miguel was young, he used to eat an apple for lunch every day

A

De joven, Miguel comía una manzana de almuerzo todos los días

he/she used to eat - comía

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13
Q

Translate to Spanish.

As kids, we didn’t used to eat vegetables. We only used to eat fruits

A

De niños, no comíamos verduras. Sólo comíamos frutas

we used to eat - comíamos

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14
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Rosa and Paloma used to eat together every day

A

Rosa y Paloma comían juntas todos los días

they used to eat - comían

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15
Q

Translate to Spanish.

You (vosotros) used to eat chicken every Thursday

A

Vosotros comíais pollo todos los jueves

you (vosotros) used to eat - comíais

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15
Q

Translate to Spanish.

TO EAT (Imperfect)

  • I ate
  • You ate
  • He/She ate
  • We ate
  • You ate
  • They ate
A

COMER (Tiempo Imperfecto)

  • Yo comía
  • Tú comías
  • Él/Ella/Ud comía
  • Nosotros comíamos
  • Vosotros comíais
  • Ellos/Ellas/Uds comían
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16
Q

What are the endings of regular -er and -ir verbs (such as comer and sentir) conjugated in the Imperfect Tense?

A

Regular Imperfect -er and -ir endings

  • -ía (yo)
  • -ías (tú)
  • -ía (él/ella/ud)
  • -íamos (nosotros)
  • -íais (vosotros)
  • -ían (ellos/ellas/uds)
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17
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I feel sad when you don’t talk to me

A

Yo me siento triste cuando tú no me hablas

to feel - sentir(se). Note that sentir(se) is conjugated like mentir in the present tense (e.g. “I feel” - Yo (me) siento)

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18
Q

Translate to Spanish.

When I used to walk with you, I used to feel very tired

A

Cuando caminaba contigo, me sentía muy cansada

I used to feel - me sentía

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19
Q

Translate to Spanish.

When I was with you, you used to feel happy

A

Cuando estaba contigo, te sentías feliz

you used to feel - te sentías

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20
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Your mother used to feel tired when you didn’t help her clean

A

Tu madre se sentía cansada cuando no le ayudabas a limpiar

he/she used to feel - se sentía

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21
Q

Translate to Spanish.

We used to feel happy to go to your house every Wednesday

A

Nos sentíamos contentos de ir a tu casa todos los miércoles

we used to feel - nos sentíamos

22
Q

Translate to Spanish.

You (vosotros) were feeling embarrassed; that’s why you didn’t come

A

Vosotros os sentíais avergonzados; por eso no vinisteis

you (vosotros) used to feel - sentíais. Note that the conjugation “were feeling” is translated in Spanish by the imperfect

23
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Do you know if they were feeling happy after she arrived?

A

¿Sabes si ellos se sentían contentos después de que ella llegó?

they used to feel - se sentían. Note the use of the imperfect se sentían in order to show how they were feeling and the preterite llegó to show one moment in time

24
Q

Translate to Spanish.

TO FEEL (Imperfect)

  • I used to feel
  • You used to feel
  • He/She used to feel
  • We used to feel
  • You used to feel
  • They used to feel
A

SENTIR(SE) (Tiempo Imperfecto)

  • Yo (me) sentía
  • Tú (te) sentías
  • Él/Ella/Ud (se) sentía
  • Nosotros (nos) sentíamos
  • Vosotros (os) sentíais
  • Ellos/Ellas/Uds (se) sentían

Note that -ir verbs are conjugated the same as -er verbs in the preterite tense

25
Q

When do you use the preterite and the imperfect tenses?

A

Preterite:

  • An action that occurred once as a single event
  • An action that occurred a limited number of times
  • An action that was contained witihin a specific time frame

Imperfect:

  • An action that was customary or habitual in the past
  • An action that was ongoing
  • An action that was contained within a broad time frame
26
Q

Translate to Spanish.

That color is very pretty

A

Ese color es muy bonito

color - el color

27
Q

Translate to Spanish.

My brother has brown hair, but I don’t

A

Mi hermano tiene el cabello de color castaño, pero yo no

brown - marrón, castaño, café. Note that the use of these words depends on the region

28
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I used to be very blonde as a child, but now I have brown hair

A

Yo era muy rubia de niña, pero ahora tengo el cabello de color castaño

I used to be - era. Note that ser is irregular in the imperfect tense

29
Q

Translate to Spanish.

When you were young, you always used to do your homework

A

Cuando eras joven, siempre hacías tu tarea

you used to be - eras

30
Q

Translate to Spanish.

José was not a happy boy because he always used to hurt himself

A

José no era un niño feliz porque siempre se lastimaba

he/she used to be - era

31
Q

Translate to Spanish.

We used to be best friends. What happened?

A

Nosotros éramos mejores amigos. ¿Qué pasó?

we used to be - éramos

32
Q

Translate to Spanish.

You (vosotros) used to be the most intelligent students in the class

A

Vosotros erais los estudiantes más inteligentes de la clase

you (vosotros) used to be - erais

33
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Alejandro and Antonio used to be the worst students, but now they are the best ones

A

Alejandro y Antonio eran los peores estudiantes, pero ahora son los mejores

they used to be - eran

34
Q

Translate to Spanish.

We use to not have any money when we were poor students

A

No teníamos nada de dinero cuando éramos estudiantes pobres

money - el dinero

35
Q

Translate to Spanish.

TO BE (Imperfect)

  • I used to be
  • You used to be
  • He/She used to be
  • We used to be
  • You used to be
  • They used to be
A

SER (Tiempo Imperfecto)

  • Yo era
  • Tú eras
  • Él/Ella/Ud era
  • Nosotros éramos
  • Vosotros erais
  • Ellos/Ellas/Uds eran

Note that the conjugations for ser in the imperfect tense are irregular

36
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I used to go to the supermarket with my grandmother every Saturday

A

Yo iba al supermercado con mi abuela todos los sábados

I used to go - iba. Remember that ir is irregular in the imperfect tense

37
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Did you go to the movies a lot when you were a kid?

A

¿Ibas mucho al cine cuando eras niño?

you used to go - ibas

38
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Rosario used to go to the museum all the time

A

Rosario iba al museo todo el tiempo

he/she used to go - iba

39
Q

Translate to Spanish.

When we had time, we used to go to your house

A

Cuando teníamos tiempo, íbamos a tu casa

we used to go - íbamos

40
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Every time you would go to school, I would go to work

A

Cada vez que tú ibas al colegio, yo iba a trabajar

every time, each time - cada vez

41
Q

Translate to Spanish.

How often do you exercise?

A

¿Cada cuánto haces ejercicio?

to exercise - hacer ejercicio. Note that cada cuá**nto means “how often”

42
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I exercise every other day

A

Hago ejercicio cada dos días

every other - cada dos. One may also say un día de por medio. *Cada otro* is wrong

43
Q

Translate to Spanish.

The rest of the students went to the museum

A

Los demás de los estudiantes fueron al museo

the rest of the - los demás de

44
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Are you going to eat the rest of the chicken too?

A

¿Te vas a comer el resto del pollo también?

the rest - el resto. Note that comer often takes reflexive pronouns (e.g. nos comemos la ensalada, él se come la manzana, etc.), although it is not obligatory

45
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Both sisters were teachers at this school

A

Ambas hermanas fueron maestras en esta escuela

both - los dos, ambos

46
Q

Translate to Spanish.

Each time that you (vosotros) went to the library, I was already returning from there

A

Cada vez que vosotros ibais a la biblioteca, yo ya estaba regresando de allí

you (vosotros) used to go - ibais

47
Q

Translate to Spanish.

They used to go to the museum each time that they had art homework

A

Ellos iban al museo cada vez que tenían tarea de arte

they used to go - iban

48
Q

Translate to Spanish.

TO GO (Imperfect)

  • I used to go
  • You used to go
  • He/She used to go
  • We used to go
  • You used to go
  • They used to go
A

IR (Tiempo Imperfecto)

  • Yo iba
  • Tú ibas
  • Él/Ella/Ud iba
  • Nosotros íbamos
  • Vosotros ibais
  • Ellos/Ellas/Uds iban

Remember that the conjugations for ir in the imperfect tense are irregular

49
Q

Translate to Spanish.

I already finished my homework

A

Ya acabé mi tarea

to finish - acabar. Terminar and acabar can be used synonymously in certain cases (e.g., when describing someone finishing an activity)

50
Q

Translate to Spanish.

We had just arrived when my mom called

A

Acabábamos de llegar cuando llamó mi mamá

Note that conjugating acabar in the imperfect tense allows us to indicate that something “had just” happened

51
Q

What is the imperfect progressive tense in Spanish?

A

The imperfect progressive is the Spanish equivalent of “was __-ing”. Like the present progressive (e.g. está estudiando), the imperfect progressive (e.g. estaba estudiando) is comprised of estar conjugated in the imperfect and a present participle:

  • Estábamos escuchando el radio - “We were listening to the radio.”
52
Q

Translate to English.

  • Yo lo conocía
  • Yo lo conocí
A
  • Lo conocía means “I used to know him”
  • Lo conocí means “I met him”
53
Q

Translate to English.

  • Yo sabía la respuesta
  • Yo supe la respuesta
A
  • Sabía means “I knew”
  • Supe is closer to “I found out”
54
Q

Translate to English.

  • Yo tenía mucho dinero
  • Yo tuve mucho dinero
A
  • Tenía mucho dinero means “I used to have a lot of money”
  • Tuve mucho dinero means “I had a lot of money” or “I got a lot of money”
55
Q

Translate to Spanish.

We just finished cooking

A

Acabamos de cocinar

to have just - acabar de.

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