1 St. Aloysius School Spanish III 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 -aron -aron To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the imperfect, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following endings: -aba -abas -aba -ábamos -aban -aban Compare the verb “hablar” conjugated in the preterite and the imperfect. P R E T E R I T E I M P E R F E C T hablé hablaba hablaste hablabas habló hablaba hablamos hablábamos hablasteis hablabais hablaron hablaban 2 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 de la una hasta las dos. Juan spoke from one until two o’clock. (Clearly stated beginning and end) It is important to realize that the beginning and the end may not always be clearly stated. Juan habló dos horas. Juan spoke for two hours. (Implied beginning and end) Juan habló con la estudiante. Fr. Clint sayz: For the sake of Juan spoke with the student. simplicity at this point, (Implied beginning and end) translate the preterite as the Generally speaking, the imperfect is used for simple past: eg. I ate, drank, actions in the past that are not seen as completed. Use of the imperfect tense looked, etc. Translate the implies that the past action did not have a imperfect with “used to” or definite beginning or a definite end. “was”/”were”: eg. I used to Las chicas hablaban en inglés. eat, I was drinking, we were The girls used to speak in English. looking, etc. (No definite beginning or end) And sometimes you just have to eat some chocolate! 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. Do Exercise A & B in the back of this packet. 3 ER and IR verbs in the Preterite Tense In the last lesson, you learned that the preterite is used for past actions that are seen as completed. You also learned how to conjugate regular -ar verbs. In this lesson, you will learn how to conjugate -er and -ir verbs, and become more familiar with the uses of the preterite. As we have seen, to conjugate regular -ar verbs in the preterite, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following: -é -aste -ó -amos -aron -aron Now, to conjugate regular -er and -ir verbs in the preterite, simply drop the ending (-er or -ir) and add one of the following: -í -iste -ió -imos -ieron -ieron Here are all three regular preterite verb forms together: hablar comer vivir hablé comí viví hablaste comiste viviste habló comió vivió hablamos comimos vivimos hablaron comieron vivieron hablaron comieron vivieron Note: the nosotros forms for -ar and -ir verbs are the same in both preterite and present tenses: hablamos, vivimos. The preterite is used for actions that can be viewed as single events. Ella caminó por el parque. Ellos llegaron a las ocho. She walked through the park. They arrived at eight o'clock. 4 The preterite is used for actions that were repeated a specific number of times, or occurred during a specific period of time. Ayer escribí tres cartas. Vivimos allí por cuatro años. Yesterday I wrote three letters. We lived there for four years. The preterite is used for actions that were part of a chain of events. Ella se levantó, se vistió, y salió de la casa. She got up, dressed, and left the house. The preterite is used to state the beginning or the end of an action. Empezó a nevar a las ocho de la mañana. It began to snow at eight in the morning. The above examples all fall within our general rule for using the preterite: The preterite is used for past actions that are seen as completed. ER and IR Verbs in the Imperfect Tense As we saw above, you learned that the imperfect is used for past actions 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. You also learned how to conjugate regular -ar verbs. In this lesson, you will learn how to conjugate -er and -ir verbs, and become more familiar with the uses of the imperfect. To conjugate regular -ar verbs in the imperfect, simply drop the ending (-ar) and add one of the following: -aba -abas -aba -ábamos -aban -aban Now, to conjugate regular -er and -ir verbs in the imperfect, simply drop the ending (-er or -ir) and add one of the following: -ía -ías -ía -íamos -ían -ían 5 Here are all three regular imperfect verb forms together: hablar comer vivir hablaba comía vivía hablabas comías vivías hablaba comía vivía hablábamos comíamos vivíamos hablaban comían vivían hablaban comían vivían The imperfect is used for actions that were repeated habitually. Almorzábamos juntos todos los días. Las señoras siempre charlaban por las We would lunch together every day. mañanas. The ladies would always chat in the mornings. The imperfect is used for actions that "set the stage" for another action. Yo leía cuando entró mi papá. I was reading when my papa entered. (Note that "entered" is preterite) The imperfect is used for telling time and stating one's age. Eran las siete de la noche. La niña tenía cinco años. It was seven o'clock at night. The little girl was five years old. The above examples all fall within our general rule for using the imperfect: The imperfect is used for past actions that are not seen as completed. Do Exercise C at the end of this packet. 6 Seeing them all lined up! Subject Translation AR Verb Tranlsation ER Verb Translation IR Verb Translation Pronoun Hablar Comer Vivir Present Tense Yo I Hablo I talk Como I eat Vivo I live Tu You Hablas You talk Comes You eat Vives You live El, ella S/he Habla s/he talks Come s/he eats Vive s/he lives Nosotros We Hablamos We talk Comemos We eat Vivimos We live Ustedes You-all Hablan You-all talk Comen You-all eat Viven You-all live Ustedes They Hablan They talk Comen They eat Viven They live Imperfect Tense Yo I hablaba I was talking comía I was eating vivía I was living Tu You hablabas You were comías You were vivías You were talking eating living El, ella S/he hablaba s/he was comía s/he was vivía s/he was talking eating living Nosotros We hablábamos We were comíamos We were vivíamos We were talking eating living Ustedes You-all hablaban You-all were comían You-all were vivían You-all were talking eating living Ustedes They hablaban They were comían They were vivín They were talking eating living Preterite Yo I hablé I spoke comí I ate viví I lived Tu You hablaste You spoke comiste You ate viviste You lived El, ella S/he habló s/he spoke comió S/he ate vivió S/he lived Nosotros We hablamos We spoke comimos We ate vivimos We lived Ustedes You-all hablaron You-all spoke comieron You-all ate vivieron You-all lived Ustedes They hablaron They Spoke comieron They ate vivieron They lived El dia de los muertos! 7 Ser, Ir, Dar & Hacer in the Preterite Tense… In this lesson you will learn to conjugate four important verbs in the preterite tense: ser, ir, dar and hacer. These four verbs are irregular; you must memorize them – there’s no easy way around it: Ser (to be) Ir (to go) Dar (to give) Hacer (to do or make) fui fui di hice fuiste fuiste diste hiciste fue fue dio hizo fuimos fuimos dimos hicimos fueron fueron dieron hicieron fueron fueron dieron hicieron Note: This is not a typo; ser and ir do have identical conjugations in the preterite! To review some of the rules for using the preterite: • The preterite is used for actions that can be viewed as single events. • The preterite is used for actions that were repeated a specific number of times. • The preterite is used for actions that occurred during a specific period of time. • The preterite is used for actions that were part of a chain of events. • The preterite is used to state the beginning or the end of an action. … and in the Imperfect Tense! Remember, the imperfect is used for past actions 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. The imperfect tells when -- in general, an action occurred. Good news! There are only three irregular verbs in the imperfect. You must simply memorize them. Ser (to be) Ir (to go) Ver (to look at or to see) era iba veía eras ibas veías era iba veía éramos íbamos veíamos erais ibais veíais eran iban veían To review some of the rules for using the imperfect: • The imperfect is used for actions that were repeated habitually.