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Action Shots!
Background vs Foreground :
El pretérito imperfecto vs
El pretérito indefinido
Choosing when
to use the correct
past tense
The imperfecto is used for ongoing
conditions andhabitual actions in the past.
The indefinido is used for completed events in the past.
When talking about the past, you must use the pretérito indefinido and the
pretérito imperfecto, often simultaneously!
Remember:
habló = he talked, he did talk
hablaba = he was talking, he used to talk, he would talk & he
talked
The indefinido is generally translated as the simple past in English.
The imperfecto has several English equivalents
(including the English simple past).
Translations:
Llovía cuando salí. = (It was raining when I went out.)
(imperfect) (preterite)
Llovía is an ongoing condition, whereas
salí is a completed action.
Ejemplos:
Caminaba indicates a continuing action
or ongoing state, the background
interrupted by an event with a definite ending point, such as
me caí.
Caminaba por la calle cuando me caí. =
(I was walking in the street when I fell.)
Iba todos los días, pero ese día no fui. = (I used to go every day, but that day I didn’t go.)
Time expressions used with the imperfecto, on the contrary, indicate habit, repetition or
long duration.
The event in the pretérito indefinido is often signaled by a very specific time expression, such as ese día,
indicating a single completed action.
Ejemplo: Más…
Use the imperfecto for: An ongoing or continuous past actions Setting the scene Telling time Telling your age Describing physical and mental states Describing the characteristics of people, places, things or situations
Review
Use the indefinido for:Actions that are single,
completed eventsActions that happened a
stated number of timesActions that were part of a
series /sequence/succession of events
To state the beginning or end of an action
Review
Eran las doce de la noche y llovía. Un hombre abrió la puerta. Era viejo y muy delgado. Llevaba ropa negra y tenía la cara muy blanca. Lo miré por un segundo y corrí a mi casa. =
(It was midnight and it was raining. A man opened the door. He was old and very thin. He was wearing black and his face was very white. I looked at him for a second and ran to my home.)
Ejemplo:
1. Jugaba al Scrabble™ con Judy.2. Comían helado todos los días.3. Mi profesor me gritó hoy.4. ¿Adónde fuiste después de la escuela?
1. He was playing Scrabble™ with Judy. 2. They ate ice cream every day.3. My teacher yelled (gritar)at me today. 4. Where did you go after school?
Check Your Knowledge!
• The pretérito indefinido is used in Spanish to answer the question “What happened?”.
• On the other hand, you will usually put a verb in the imperfecto if it answers the questions “What was going on (when something else happened?)”, or “What was it like/How did things use to be?”.
• Generally, the pretérito indefinido is used to relate events that advance a plot/storyline while the imperfecto is used to describe what was going on in the past, states of being in the past, or past habits.
Q&A:
Telling stories…
• All this takes on special importance in narration of past actions, when both tenses often occur in the same story side-by-side.
• Narrating a story entails both describing a setting (habitual actions, atmosphere, places and people) using the imperfecto and recounting a plot or a series of events, actions, changes of feelings or thoughts using the indefinido.
El imperfecto:usually implies ongoing actions in
the past• Time:
– It was 2 o’clock…
• Date: – …on a sunny Saturday in May.
• Weather:– It was beautiful out – a truly perfect spring day!
• Background actions: was …ing, were …ing– The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, the flowers were
blooming, and love was most definitely in the air…
• Feelings/Emotions: – I was feeling happy, healthy, and good about life,…
• Habitual Actions:– On such days, I used to go for walks in the park…
The following adverbs are commonly associated with the imperfecto to express an
incomplete past: Spanish English
Antes Before
Érase/Había una vezOnce upon a time (used only in stories)
Generalmente GenerallyFrecuentemente FrequentlyA menudo OftenConstantemente ConstantlySiempre Always
Spanish English
Cada día Each day
Cada mes Each month
Cada año Each year
Raras veces Rarely
Por lo general In general
Todos los años Every year
Todos los meses Every month
Todos los días Every day
De vez en cuando Occasionally
Normalmente Normally
Usualmente Usually
Mientras While
Act 1, Scene 1:Setting the stage w/
el imperfecto
• ¿Cuál era la fecha?• ¿Qué hora era?• ¿Qué tiempo hacía?• ¿Cómo era el medioambiente?• ¿Cuántos años tenía?• ¿Cómo se sentía?• ¿Qué más se pasaba en la
escena?
Act 1, Scene 1:Setting the stage w/ el imperfecto
• What was the date?• What time was it?• What was the weather like?• Describe the environment?• How old was the person?• How was the person feeling?• Was there anything else going
on in the background?
Repaso: el tiempo
(very) hot (mucha) calor(very) cld (mucho) friocool fresconice out buen tiempo
bad weather mal tiempo
windy vientosunny sol
Hace/Hacía…
o:
• (El) llover
• (El) nevar
Repaso: el tiempo
oscuro darknublado cloudylluvioso rainy
niebla fog
humedad humidityrelámpagos lightning
Está/Estaba…
Hay/Había…
Act 1, Scene 2:The foreground w/ el indefinido
• An action on a specific date/point in time:– On that sunny Saturday, the 24th of May, my life
changed.
• Interrupting action:– As I was strolling through the park, a beautiful
specimen ran right into me, knocking me both literally and figuratively on my butt.
• Repetition of events:– I got up, disoriented, but fell back down again 3 times.
• Series/sequence/succession of events:– When I was finally able to stand, first I brushed myself
off, then I straightened out my shirt, finally I got the nerve to approach her…
The following adverbs are commonly associated with the indefinido to express a completed action at a
specific point in time.past: Spanish English
Ayer YesterdayAnteayer/antier Day before yesterdayAnoche Last nightAntenoche The night before lastLa semana pasada Last weekEl año pasado Last yearEl verano pasado Last summer
Spanish EnglishHace + tiempo + pretérito AgoEn la mañana In the morningPor la mañana In the morningEl otro día The other dayEl fin de semana pasado Last weekendSiempre* AlwaysNunca* Never
*For actions/events that never actually happened (as opposed to habitual events in the past that regularly did happen): i.e., Siempre quise ir a Disneyworld, pero nunca fui.
I always wanted to go to Disneyworld, but I never went.
1. Which tense should I use?IMPERFECTO
AR = aba, abas, aba, ábamos, abais, abanER/IR = ía, ías, ía, íamos, íais, ían
1. DESCRIPTIONS: - Time- Date- Weather- Feelings/emotions/conditions- physical
2. HABITS (used to/would…)
3. ONGOING actions (was/were …ing)
4. NON-SPECIFIC DATE RANGE OVER AN EXTENDED PERIOD OF TIME
PRETÉRITO INDEFINIDOAR = é, aste, ó, amos, asteis, aron
ER/IR = í, iste, ió, imos, isteis, ieron
1. EVENTS moving the plot forward (It usually interrupts an ongoing action in the Imparfait)
2. SUCCESSION of events (1st, then, after, finally…)
3. REPITITION of events (anytime you use “fois”) EXCEPT w/ “Il était une fois…” (once upon a time)
4. SPECIFIC DATE/POINT IN TIME
setting
Ahora, te toca a ti:
• In pairs, illustrate a scene and describe it, using both past tenses.
• The catch? You both interpret the same scene very differently…
• Specs: Write at least 3 sentences each to describe the background (imperfecto) and at least 7 sentences each to describe the foreground/developing events (pretérito indefinido).