This article will help you learn the differences between the Spanish Preterite and the Imperfect past tenses. You will see when each of them is used and when they can be used together. Then you will be able to practice Spanish Preterite vs. Imperfect with additional exercises.
Uses of Preterite vs. Imperfect
To start with, we are going to remember when to use each of these past tenses. You should use Preterite (
Let’s see how to correctly use these tenses when two or more actions happen together.
Imperfect: Simultaneous Actions
If two actions are happening at the same time, you should use Imperfect for both verbs.
Mientras Carlos veía la película, Carmen tejía una bufanda.
While Carlos was watching the movie, Carmen was knitting a scarf.
Mientras el profesor observaba, los niños hacían los ejercicios.
While the teacher was observing, the children we doing the exercises.
Imperfect: Past Habits
When you are describing two or more habits in the past, use Imperfect for the verbs.
Cuando Ana vivía con su madre, preparaba la cena todos los días.
When Ana lived with their mom, she used to prepare dinner every day.
Cuando estaba en Argentina, comía mucha carne y poco pescado.
While I was in Argentina, I ate a lot of meat and little fish.
Preterite: Completed Actions
In contrast to Imperfect that expresses that an action was not finished, the Preterite is used for actions that were completed in the past.
When you talk about two or more actions that started and finished in the past, you should use the verbs in the Preterite form.
Esa contraseña dio problemas y la cambié.
That password gave problems and I changed it.
Ayer por la tarde vino el mecánico y arregló mi bicicleta.
The mechanic came yesterday afternoon and he fixed my bike.
Notice that actions in those examples were completed one after another.
Preterite and Imperfect together
When there are two actions and one of them happened while the other one was still going on, you should use both tenses together.
Have a look at the following examples. You can see both actions are taking place in the past. However, one action is ongoing (Imperfect) when the second one happened (Preterite).
Mientras yo viajaba en tren, terminé mi artículo.
I was sitting in the train, I finished my article.
Isabel me contó su historia mientras comíamos.
Isabel told me her story while we were eating.
Tu hermana llamó por teléfono mientras tú dormías.
Your sister called while you were sleeping.
Mientras Julia volvía del trabajo, tuvo un accidente.
While Julia was coming back from work, she had an accident.
Notice that when Imperfect is used, the action wasn’t necessarily completed. When the Preterite is used, on the contrary, the action is fully completed.
Preterite vs. Imperfect
Look at the following Preterite vs. Imperfect examples to see how the meaning changes depending on which tense you use:
| Actions | Facts | |
| Imperfect + Imperfect | While I was on the train, I was working on my article. Both actions are not finished. | |
| Imperfect + Preterite | While I was on the train, I wrote my article to the end. The Preterite action ( | |
| Preterite + Preterite | First I traveled by train and then I wrote my article. Both actions were completed one after another. |
Exercises
Let’s practice the uses of the Spanish Preterite vs. Imperfect tenses with these exercises.