Preterite vs Imperfect: Telling Stories in the Past

Introduction

Spanish has two main past tenses: the preterite (pretérito) and the imperfect (imperfecto). English usually only has one ("I ate"), so choosing between the two is one of the biggest challenges at the intermediate level.

Think of it this way: The preterite is a snapshot — a completed action. The imperfect is a video — an ongoing scene or background.

The Preterite: Completed Actions

Use the preterite for actions that started and ended at a specific point.

Regular Conjugation

When to use it

• Completed actions: Ayer comí pizza. (Yesterday I ate pizza.)
• Specific number of times: Fui tres veces. (I went three times.)
• Chain of events: Me levanté, desayuné y salí. (I got up, ate breakfast, and left.)
• Start or end of an action: La película empezó a las ocho. (The movie started at eight.)

The Imperfect: Background & Habits

Use the imperfect for actions that were ongoing, habitual, or descriptive in the past.

Regular Conjugation

Only three verbs are irregular in the imperfect:

• ser: era, eras, era, éramos, eran
• ir: iba, ibas, iba, íbamos, iban
• ver: veía, veías, veía, veíamos, veían

When to use it

• Habits: De niño, jugaba todos los días. (As a child, I played every day.)
• Descriptions: Hacía sol y la playa estaba llena. (It was sunny and the beach was crowded.)
• Age / Time: Tenía diez años. (I was ten years old.) / Eran las tres. (It was three o'clock.)
• Ongoing actions interrupted: Leía cuando llegaste. (I was reading when you arrived.)

Using Both Together

In storytelling, the imperfect sets the scene and the preterite drives the plot:

Era de noche. Llovía mucho. De repente, oí un ruido. Abrí la puerta y vi a un gato.

(It was nighttime. It was raining a lot. Suddenly, I heard a noise. I opened the door and saw a cat.)

• Llovía (imperfect) → background weather
• Oí, abrí, vi (preterite) → completed plot events

Practice