The imperfect tense or the preterite tense? Share Copied!
Brief explanation of the difference between the imperfect past tense and the simple past tense.
Gramática: ¿El pretérito imperfecto o el pretérito indefinido?
A2 Spanish The imperfect past vs the preterite
Level: A2
Module 2: Sociedad y gobierno (Society and government)
Lesson 12: Mi tiempo en la escuela (My time at school)
Teaching guidelines +/- 15 minutes
Audio and video
- The preterite tense is used for actions that started and ended in the past and to recount a series of events that occurred in the past.
- The imperfect tense is used to describe situations or actions in progress in the past.
- The imperfect tense can be used for context and the simple past tense for specific actions.
| Tiempo verbal (Verb tense) | Regla (Rule) | Ejemplo (Example) |
|---|---|---|
| Pretérito Indefinido | Una acción que pasó y terminó en el pasado (An action that happened and ended in the past) | Aprobé el máster en 2022 (I passed the master's degree in 2022) |
| Pretérito Indefinido | Evento en el pasado (Event in the past) | El profesor suspendió la clase por la lluvia (The teacher cancelled the class due to the rain) |
| Pretérito Imperfecto | Acción habitual o repetida en el pasado (Habitual or repeated action in the past) | Siempre enseñaba en la escuela primaria (He always taught in primary school) |
| Pretérito Imperfecto | Cómo era un lugar o situación en el pasado (What a place or situation was like in the past) | La escuela era antigua y tenía patio grande (The school was old and had a large courtyard.) |
| Pretérito Imperfecto + Pretérito Indefinido | El imperfecto describe la situación y el indefinido dice qué pasó (The imperfect describes the situation and the preterite says what happened.) | Mientras veníamos de clase, llamó mi madre (While we were coming from class, my mother called.) |
Exceptions!
- Both tenses can appear in the same narrative.
Exercise 1: ¿El pretérito imperfecto o el pretérito indefinido?
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
encontré, suspendimos, explicaba, organizó, enseñabas, venía, aprobé, escribían, venían, tenía
Exercise 2: Translate and use in a sentence
Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.
1
tenía
had
2
explicaba
was explaining
3
suspendimos
we cancelled
4
venía
I was coming