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Pretérito Vs. Imperfecto Two Past Tenses
El Pretérito We use preterite for EVENTS
The chain of events in a story line Distinct events, not matter how many
times they have happened in the past One time events
El Pretérito You may see these verbs in the preterite
more because they tend to be isolated or one-time events Nacer – being born is a one-time event Morir – dying is a one-time event Ir – going somewhere is normally part of a
storyline
El Pretérito We use preterite with ACTIONS
Actions within a defined period of time Isolated actions Interrupting actions
(that disrupt something ongoing) Actions that did not happen
El Pretérito You may see these phrases setting up
preterite isolated actions: Un día… Una vez… Por un momento…
El Pretérito You may notice that the body paragraphs of
a story are mostly in the preterite because they tell us the events in the storyline.
If you had to mark your verbs on a timeline, preterite verbs would make dots on a timeline – each one is an isolated event.
Preterite verbs are the actions that hold a story together – the plot points.
El Imperfecto We use imperfect for REPEATED
ACTIONS “used to ___” “would ___” in the past Habitual actions Actions over an indefinite period of time
El Imperfecto You may see these key phrases
Todos los sábados… Cada semana… Por mucho tiempo…
El Imperfecto We use imperfect to SET THE SCENE
“was ___ing” or “were ___ing” “was going to ___” Weather Time Description of a scene An on-going action that gets interrupted
El Imperfecto You may see these verbs in imperfect
more than others because they set the scene: Ser (with time) Hacer (with weather phrases)
El Imperfecto We use imperfect to DESCRIBE
Age Physical Appearance Feelings, Emotions, and Beliefs States of Mind/Body (tener hambre)
El Imperfecto You may see these verbs in imperfect
more than others because they are often used to describe: Ser (with descriptions) Tener (with eye color, hair color, age) Llamarse (to say someone’s name)
El Imperfecto You may notice that the first paragraph of a
story is often in the imperfect because it sets the scene.
If you had to mark your verbs on a timeline, imperfect verbs could not fit into a single dot on a timeline – these are things that go on for awhile.
Imperfect verbs are the things that make a story juicy – descriptions, feelings, what was going on in the background, etc.
El Imperfecto This might work as a partial summary:
OPA TWA FEB“Oprah took a TWA flight in February”
Outward Physical AppearanceTime Weather Age
Feelings Emotions Beliefs
Meaning Changers Imperfecto
Saber = to know something
Conocer = to know someone
Haber = there existed
Pretérito Saber = to find
something out Conocer = to
meet someone Haber = there
occurred
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I swam yesterday I used to swim.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I swam yesterday
PRETÉRITO
I used to swim.
IMPERFECTO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I went to the zoo
on a field trip. As a kid, I went to
the zoo a lot.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I went to the zoo
on a field trip.
PRETÉRITO
As a kid, I went to the zoo a lot.
IMPERFECTO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I remember taking
that class. I was so confused.
For a moment, I got confused.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I remember taking
that class. I was so confused.
IMPERFECTO
For a moment, I got confused.
PRETÉRITO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I knew my
husband for 5 years before we married.
I met my husband in dance class.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I knew my
husband for 5 years before we married.
IMPERFECTO
I met my husband in dance class.
PRETÉRITO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I found out that
we had a test. I knew that we
had a test
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? I found out that
we had a test.
PRETÉRITO
I knew that we had a test
IMPERFECTO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? There was a fire
drill yesterday. There were a lot of
kids standing outside.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? There was a fire
drill yesterday.
PRETÉRITO
There were a lot of kids standing outside.
IMPERFECTO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? Once upon a time
a baby was born. His name was
Josué, he had lots of dark hair, and he smiled all the time.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? Once upon a time
a baby was born.
PRETÉRITO
His name was Josué, he had lots of dark hair, and he smiled all the time.
IMPERFECTO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? My grandma was
named Elizabeth. She was an artist, she loved her dog, and she watched birds from her deck.
She died in 2006.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? My grandma was
named Elizabeth. She was an artist, she loved her dog, and she watched birds from her deck.
IMPERFECTO
She died in 2006.
PRETÉRITO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? Once upon a time
there was a princess named Anna. She loved snow and played with her sister every day.
One day her sister accidentally hit her with a magic spell and Anna froze. Her parents heard the commotion and came to help.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? Once upon a time
there was a princess named Anna. She loved snow and played with her sister every day.
IMPERFECTO
One day her sister accidentally hit her with a magic spell and Anna froze. Her parents heard the commotion and came to help.
PRETÉRITO
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? This morning I
woke up, brushed my teeth, showered, and went to work.
This morning I was so grumpy. My head hurt and I was so tired and I just wanted to stay in bed.
¿Pretérito o Imperfecto? This morning I
woke up, brushed my teeth, showered, and went to work.
PRETÉRITO
This morning I was so grumpy. My head hurt and I was so tired and I just wanted to stay in bed.
IMPERFECTO
