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The imperfect tense of -er and -ir verbs
The imperfect tense of -er and -ir verbs is formed using a different set of endings to -ar verbs. Almost all verbs commonly classed as "irregular" ending in -er/-ir also follow this pattern.
The basic pattern is that the infinitive ending (-er or -ir) is replaced with -ía. Then, regular person endings are added where necessary. Adding -ía then the person endings, this gives the following endings for the imperfect of -er and -ir verbs:
| Person | Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -ía | hacer > hacía I was making/doing, I used to do/make |
| tú | -ías | comer > comías you were eating, you used to eat |
| él/ellas | -ía | escribir > escribía he/she was writing, he/she used to write |
| nosotros, -as | -íamos | leer > leíamos we were reading, we used to read |
| vosotros, -as | -íais | vender > vendíais you were (all) selling, you (all) used to sell |
| ellos/ellas | -ían | correr > corrían they were running, they used to run |
Next: practise these forms
On the next page, you can practise the above forms with an on-line imperfect tense exercise on -er and -ir verbs.
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