University:
High School
Course:
High School Linguistics
Academic year:

2022
Views:

92

Pages:

9
Author:

Jace Leach

PRETERITE & IMPERFECT: OTHER USES haber – to be ■ Presente- hay (there is, there are) ■ Pretérito- hubo (there was, there were) ■ Imperfecto – había (there was, there were) Había (there was, there were) Imperfecto ■Había is used to describe a situation that existed in the past. Había mucho humo en el departamento. Hubo (there was, there were) Preterite - irregular ■Hubo is used to say that an event took place. Hubo un terremoto ayer a las seis de la mañana. The preterite and the imperfect tenses may be used in a single sentence. Use the imperfect: Use the preterite: To tell what day or time it was when something happened Eran las cinco de la mañana cuando… … empezó a llover. Más ejemplos: Use the imperfect: Use the preterite: To tell what the weather was like for actions completed in the past Llovía mucho cuando … … salimos de la fiesta. Más ejemplos Use the imperfect: Use the preterite: To describe the physical, mental, and to talk about an event emotional states of a person or thing Mucha gente quería ayudar cuando… … el incendio destruyó la casa. Verbs often used in the imperfect to describe states of being: ■ estar (triste, contento, cansado) ■ parecer (cansado, mal) ■ sentirse (bien, mal) ■ tener (calor, frío, hambre, sed, sueño) ■ pensar ■ querer ■ saber Answers: ■ To be sad, happy, tired ■ To seem tired, bad ■ To feel good, bad ■ To be hot, cold, hungry, thirsty, sleepy ■ To think, believe, plan ■ To want, like, love ■ To know