Preterite vs Imperfect: Which Past Tense to Use
A clear way to choose between the two main Spanish past tenses, with contrasting examples.
Spanish has two main past tenses. English often uses one form for both, so the choice can be confusing.
The core idea
- Preterite: a completed event, a point in time
- Imperfect: a background, habit or ongoing situation
Pairs of examples
| Preterite | Imperfect |
|---|---|
| Ayer llovió. It rained yesterday (an event). | Llovía cuando salí. It was raining when I left (background). |
| Comí a las dos. I ate at two. | Comía a las dos todos los días. I used to eat at two every day. |
| Fui a Madrid. I went to Madrid. | Iba a Madrid cada verano. I used to go to Madrid every summer. |
Telling a story
Stories use both. The imperfect sets the scene, and the preterite moves the plot:
Era una noche oscura. Hacía frío. De repente, oí un ruido y abrí la puerta.
It was a dark night. It was cold. Suddenly I heard a noise and opened the door.
Quick tests
Ask yourself:
- Did it happen once and finish? Preterite.
- Was it a repeated habit? Imperfect.
- Am I describing how things were? Imperfect.
- Did something interrupt an ongoing action? The ongoing action is imperfect, and the interruption is preterite.
Estudiaba cuando sonó el teléfono. I was studying when the phone rang.
Signal words
| Often preterite | Often imperfect |
|---|---|
| ayer, anoche | siempre, a menudo |
| de repente | mientras |
| una vez | todos los días |
| el lunes | cada verano |
Meaning changes
A few verbs change meaning:
- Conocí a Ana. I met Ana.
- Conocía a Ana. I knew Ana.
- Supe la verdad. I found out the truth.
- Sabía la verdad. I knew the truth.
Tips
- Imperfect for scenery, preterite for action.
- Look for signal words.
- Read stories to see them together.
English Spanish Dictionary
Offline English–Spanish dictionary with gender and accents handled properly
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