Preterite vs Imperfect in Spanish: Rules and Examples
How this guide was made. The rules follow the Real Academia Española and Instituto Cervantes reference materials listed at the end. The example sentences are standard in Latin America and Spain unless a note says otherwise. It explains the grammar and does not claim classroom testing.
Use the preterite for completed actions with a clear beginning or end, and use the imperfect for background, habits and ongoing actions in the past. The imperfect sets the scene (Llovía y hacía frío), and the preterite moves the story forward (Entré y me senté). English hides this difference, because “I ate” can translate to either tense, so the choice depends on how you see the action.
The short version
| Use | Preterite | Imperfect |
|---|---|---|
| A completed action | Comí a las dos. (I ate at two.) | |
| A sequence of events | Llegué, cené y me acosté. (I arrived, had dinner and went to bed.) | |
| The start or the end of something | La película empezó a las ocho y terminó a las diez. | |
| A period that is over | Viví cinco años en Lima. (I lived in Lima for five years.) | |
| A habit or repeated action | Comía a las dos todos los días. (I used to eat at two every day.) | |
| Description and background | Hacía frío y llovía. (It was cold and raining.) | |
| Age and time | Tenía diez años. Eran las tres. (I was ten. It was three o’clock.) | |
| An action in progress | Leía cuando sonó el teléfono. (I was reading when the phone rang.) | |
| A state of mind in the background | Estaba cansada y no quería salir. (She was tired and did not want to go out.) |
When to use the preterite
- A single completed action. Ayer compré un libro. Anoche vi una película.
- A chain of events, one after the other. Me levanté, me duché y salí de casa.
- The beginning or end of an action. El concierto empezó a las nueve. Terminó a medianoche.
- An action with a limit on its duration. Estudié dos horas. Vivimos en México tres años. The period is over, even if it was long.
- A reaction or sudden event that interrupts. De repente, sonó el teléfono.
When to use the imperfect
- Habits and repeated actions in the past. De niño, jugaba al fútbol todos los días. It covers both “used to” and “would” in English.
- Descriptions and background. La casa era grande y tenía un jardín.
- Age, time and weather in the past. Tenía veinte años. Eran las cinco de la tarde. Hacía sol.
- Actions in progress, with no stated end. Mientras ella dormía, yo limpiaba la casa. (While she was sleeping, I was cleaning the house.)
- Feelings, wishes and states. Quería un café. Estaba muy contento.
Using both together
The two tenses often appear in the same sentence. The imperfect gives the background, and the preterite is the event that interrupts it:
- Leía cuando sonó el teléfono. (I was reading when the phone rang.)
- Mientras cocinaba, se fue la luz. (While I was cooking, the power went out.)
- Cuando era niño, mi familia iba a la playa cada verano. Un verano conocí allí a mi mejor amigo.
Here is a short story with each verb marked:
Era (imperfect) una noche fría y llovía (imperfect). Yo caminaba (imperfect) a casa cuando vi (preterite) a un hombre delante de mi puerta. Tenía (imperfect) un paraguas negro. Me miró (preterite), sonrió (preterite) y se fue (preterite).
Signal words
Some words often point to one tense. Treat them as clues, not rules, because context decides:
| Often with the preterite | Often with the imperfect |
|---|---|
| ayer, anoche | siempre |
| el lunes pasado, el año pasado | todos los días, cada verano |
| una vez, dos veces | a menudo, con frecuencia |
| de repente | normalmente, generalmente |
| en 2019, hace dos días | mientras |
| finalmente, por fin | de niño, de joven |
Verbs that change meaning
A few verbs mean different things in each tense, because the preterite marks a single event:
| Verb | Imperfect | Preterite |
|---|---|---|
| saber | Sabía la respuesta. (I knew the answer.) | Supe la verdad ayer. (I found out the truth yesterday.) |
| conocer | Conocía a Ana. (I knew Ana.) | Conocí a Ana en 2019. (I met Ana in 2019.) |
| querer | Quería salir. (I wanted to go out.) | Quise salir, pero no pude. (I tried to go out, but I could not.) No quise ir. (I refused to go.) |
| poder | Podía correr rápido. (I could run fast.) | Pude abrir la puerta. (I managed to open the door.) No pude abrirla. (I failed to open it.) |
| tener | Tenía hambre. (I was hungry.) | Ayer tuve noticias de ella. (Yesterday I got news from her.) |
The English glosses are a guide, and context can shade them: no quise ir can mean “I refused to go” or simply “I would not go”.
See the charts for saber, conocer, querer, poder and tener.
How to form the preterite and the imperfect
Regular endings, added to the stem of the verb:
| Preterite -ar (hablar) | Preterite -er/-ir (comer, vivir) | Imperfect -ar (hablar) | Imperfect -er/-ir (comer, vivir) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablé | comí, viví | hablaba | comía, vivía |
| tú | hablaste | comiste, viviste | hablabas | comías, vivías |
| él, ella, usted | habló | comió, vivió | hablaba | comía, vivía |
| nosotros | hablamos | comimos, vivimos | hablábamos | comíamos, vivíamos |
| vosotros | hablasteis | comisteis, vivisteis | hablabais | comíais, vivíais |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | hablaron | comieron, vivieron | hablaban | comían, vivían |
The imperfect has only three irregular verbs: ser (era, eras, era, éramos, erais, eran), ir (iba, ibas, iba, íbamos, ibais, iban) and ver (veía, veías, veía, veíamos, veíais, veían).
The preterite has many more irregular verbs. These are the most common ones:
| Verb | yo | él, ella | ellos |
|---|---|---|---|
| ser, ir | fui | fue | fueron |
| dar | di | dio | dieron |
| ver | vi | vio | vieron |
| hacer | hice | hizo | hicieron |
| tener | tuve | tuvo | tuvieron |
| estar | estuve | estuvo | estuvieron |
| poder | pude | pudo | pudieron |
| poner | puse | puso | pusieron |
| saber | supe | supo | supieron |
| venir | vine | vino | vinieron |
| querer | quise | quiso | quisieron |
| decir | dije | dijo | dijeron |
| traer | traje | trajo | trajeron |
Note that ser and ir share the same preterite forms, and that verbs whose irregular preterite stem ends in j (dij-, traj-, -duj-) take -eron, not -ieron: dijeron, trajeron, condujeron. Stem-changing -ir verbs also change in the third person (pedir gives pidió, pidieron), and leer and creer use y (leyó, creyeron). The irregular verbs guide covers these patterns, and the ir chart and hacer chart show them in full.
Spain and Latin America: what about “today”?
In much of Spain, speakers use the present perfect for things that happened today or that still feel connected to the present: Hoy he desayunado tarde. In most of Latin America, and in some regions of Spain, the preterite is used for the same idea: Hoy desayuné tarde. Both are correct in their regions. The preterite is safe everywhere for finished actions.
Where these tenses fit by level
The Instituto Cervantes curriculum plan introduces the imperfect (its forms, description and habit) and the preterite (its forms and a precise moment in time) at A2. At B1, learners meet the imperfect with an interrupting event, irregular preterites such as traer, decir and poner, and meaning changes such as lo supe. The regional split with the present perfect appears at C1.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ayer comía pizza. | Ayer comí pizza. | A single completed action needs the preterite. |
| De niño jugué al fútbol todos los días. (less natural) | De niño jugaba al fútbol todos los días. | A habit with no stated limit takes the imperfect. A series with a stated limit can take the preterite (Fui al gimnasio todos los días durante un mes). |
| Cuando fui niño… | Cuando era niño… | Age and background use the imperfect. |
| Vivía en Madrid cinco años. | Viví en Madrid cinco años. | A period with a stated length that is over takes the preterite. |
| No podía abrir la puerta (to mean you failed once) | No pude abrir la puerta. | The preterite of poder means you managed or failed once. |
Quick quiz
Put each verb in the preterite or the imperfect:
- Cuando yo ___ (ser) niña, mi casa ___ (tener) un jardín muy grande.
- Ayer ___ (llegar, yo) a las ocho y ___ (cenar) con mis amigos.
- Mientras ella ___ (dormir), yo ___ (limpiar) la casa.
- ___ (Ser) las cinco cuando ___ (sonar) el teléfono.
- De repente, la puerta ___ (abrirse).
- Nosotros siempre ___ (visitar) a los abuelos en verano.
- Después de muchos intentos, por fin ___ (poder, yo) abrir la puerta.
- Ella ___ (tener) veinte años cuando ___ (mudarse) a España.
Show the answers
- era, tenía (age and background).
- llegué, cené (a sequence of finished events).
- dormía, limpiaba (two actions in progress).
- Eran, sonó (time, then an interrupting event).
- se abrió (a sudden single event).
- visitábamos (a habit, signalled by siempre).
- pude (you finally managed, a single result).
- tenía, se mudó (age, then a single event).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between the preterite and the imperfect in Spanish?
The preterite presents an action as completed, with a beginning or an end, and moves a story forward. The imperfect presents an action as ongoing, habitual or as background, and sets the scene without saying when it ended.
When do you use the imperfect in Spanish?
Use it for habits and repeated actions, descriptions, age, time and weather in the past, actions in progress and states such as feelings and wishes. It covers “used to”, “would” and “was doing” in English.
When do you use the preterite in Spanish?
Use it for single completed actions, sequences of events, the beginning or end of an action and periods that are over, even long ones. Words such as ayer, anoche and de repente often signal it.
Can you use the preterite and imperfect in the same sentence?
Yes. The imperfect gives the background and the preterite gives the event that interrupts it, as in Leía cuando sonó el teléfono. Two ongoing actions at once both take the imperfect.
Why do some verbs change meaning in the preterite?
The preterite marks a single event, so saber becomes “found out”, conocer becomes “met”, querer roughly becomes “tried” (or “refused” with no) and poder becomes “managed to” (or “failed” with no).
Which verbs are irregular in the imperfect?
Only three: ser (era), ir (iba) and ver (veía). All other verbs follow the regular endings -aba for -ar verbs and -ía for -er and -ir verbs.
Which past tense do Spanish speakers use for things that happened today?
In much of Spain, the present perfect is common for things that happened today, as in Hoy he comido tarde. In most of Latin America and some regions of Spain, the preterite is used, as in Hoy comí tarde.
How do you remember which past tense to use?
Ask whether you are telling a story event or describing the scene. Events that move the story forward use the preterite, and background, habits and ongoing actions use the imperfect.
Sources and how this was researched
This guide explains grammar from published reference works and does not claim classroom testing. Main sources:
- Real Academia Española: the Nueva gramática básica on the preterite and the present perfect and on the imperfect, and the Glosario de términos gramaticales entries for the pretérito perfecto simple and the pretérito imperfecto
- Instituto Cervantes: the Plan curricular del Instituto Cervantes, grammar inventories for levels A1 to A2, B1 to B2 and C1 to C2