Uses
Spanish: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 8.4.1
Uses of the Preterite Tense
A finished one-time action
- Fernando compró un nuevo coche.
- Fernando bought a new car.
- Nací en Inglaterra.
- I was born in England.
‘Ayer, la semana pasada, hace un año’
- España ganó la Copa del Mundo en 2010.
- Spain won the world cup in 2010.
- Henry nació el cinco de julio.
- Henry was born on the 5th of July.
A finished period of time
- Vivieron en Australia durante seis meses.
- They lived in Australia for six months.
- Leí este libro el año pasado.
- I read this book last year.
Events in order, a sequence of actions
- Me vestí y salí a dar una vuelta.
- I got dressed and went for a walk.
- Entró, bebió una cerveza y comió un pedazo de pan.
- He came in, drank a beer and ate a piece of bread.
Past events in a story
- Llegó a la playa y puso su toalla en la arena.
- She arrived at the beach and put her towel on the sand.
Start and end of events
- Empezó a llover.
- It began to rain.
- La novela terminó con un final cómico.
- The book ended with a comic end.
Uses of the Imperfect Tense
Non-specific time
- When the time period is not clear, and the action isn't finished you need to use the imperfect.
- En esos años Theo vivía en un pequeño apartamento.
- In those days Theo was living in a small apartment.
Repeated actions in the past
- Todos los días comía una naranja.
- Every day I ate an orange.
- Almorzábamos todos los sábados.
- We used to eat lunch every Saturday.
Description
- When describing people, objects and events in the past, you must use the imperfect.
- La casa era grande.
- The house was big.
- Mi amiga era alta.
- My friend was tall.
- Aquel día hacía frío.
- It was cold that day.
Continuous actions that were going on when something else happened
- Comían cuando llegó su abuelo.
- They were eating when their grandad arrived.
- Mi madre cocinaba cuando salí de la casa.
- My mum was cooking when I left the house.
Age, Time
- Mi hermana tenía veintiún años.
- My sister was 21 years old.
- Eran las cinco de la tarde.
- It was five in the afternoon.
- Era el 12 de enero.
- It was the 12th of January.
Test yourself on Uses
Which of the following sentences is correct?
How do you say 'there was a lot of wind that day' in Spanish?
How do you say 'they were eating' in Spanish?