Tres verbos son irregulares en pretérito imperfecto: ser, ir y ver.
(Three verbs are irregular in pretérito imperfecto: ser, ir and ver.)
| Persona | Conjugación | Ejemplos |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | era, iba, veía | Yo era voluntario en la Cruz Roja. (I was a volunteer at the Red Cross.) Yo iba al hospital cada semana. (I went to the hospital every week.) Yo veía ambulancias pasar por mi calle. (I saw ambulances pass down my street.) |
| Tú | eras, ibas, veías | Tú eras parte del equipo de emergencia. (You were part of the emergency team.) Tú ibas al centro médico en bici. (You went to the medical center by bike.) Tú veías las instrucciones en la pared. (You saw the instructions on the wall.) |
Él Ella | era, iba, veía | Ella era paramédica en la ambulancia. (She was a paramedic in the ambulance.) Él iba a emergencias con su equipo. (He went to emergencies with his team.) Ella veía pacientes graves a diario. (She saw seriously ill patients daily.) |
Nosotros Nosotras | éramos, íbamos, veíamos | Nosotros éramos responsables del teléfono de emergencia. (We were responsible for the emergency phone.) Nosotros íbamos al hospital cada mañana. (We went to the hospital every morning.) Nosotras veíamos muchas situaciones reales. (We saw many real situations.) |
Vosotros Vosotras | erais, ibais, veíais | Vosotros erais los encargados de socorro. (You all were the relief officers.) Vosotras ibais con la Cruz Roja. (You all went with the Red Cross.) Vosotros veíais vídeos del accidente. (You all saw videos of the accident.) |
Ellos Ellas | eran, iban, veían | Ellos eran voluntarios muy buenos. (They were very good volunteers.) Ellos iban a la sala de urgencias. (They went to the emergency room.) Ellos veían muchos casos complicados. (They saw many complicated cases.) |
Exercise 1: El pretérito imperfecto de verbos irregulares
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
veías, era, ibas, íbamos, veía, veíamos, iban
1.
Ver:
Nosotros ... muchos casos cada día.
(We saw many cases every day.)
2.
Ir:
Nosotros ... a la Cruz Roja cada semana.
(We used to go to the Red Cross every week.)
3.
Ser:
El médico ... muy amable con los pacientes.
(The doctor was very kind to the patients.)
4.
Ir:
Ellos ... al centro médico cada mañana.
(They went to the medical centre every morning.)
5.
Ver:
Yo ... ambulancias pasar todo el día.
(I used to see ambulances passing by all day.)
6.
Ser:
Ella ... voluntaria en emergencias.
(She was an emergency volunteer.)
7.
Ir:
Tú ... al hospital cuando era urgente.
(You used to go to the hospital when it was urgent.)
8.
Ver:
¿Tú ... las instrucciones en la sala?
(Did you see the instructions in the room?)
Exercise 2: Multiple Choice
Instruction: Select the correct sentence in the imperfect tense for each situation related to emergency services.
1.
'Ayudaste' is in the simple past tense, not the imperfect tense; it is not the requested tense.
'Ayudabais' is second person plural, but the subject is 'I', so it does not agree.
2.
'Ibas' is second person singular; it does not agree with 'we'.
'Iba' is first or third person singular; it does not agree with 'we'.
3.
'Trabajabais' is second person plural; it does not agree with the implicit 'you' in the question.
'Trabajaban' is third person plural; it does not agree with the implicit 'you' in the question.
4.
'Eras' is second person singular; it does not agree with 'they'.
'Éramos' is first person plural; it does not agree with the subject 'they'.
Exercise 3: Rewrite the phrases
Instruction: Rewrite the sentences in the imperfect past tense using the irregular verbs: ser (to be), ir (to go) and ver (to see). Example: Now I am a volunteer at the Red Cross. → Before I was a volunteer at the Red Cross.
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⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAntes era voluntario en la Cruz Roja.(Antes era voluntario en la Cruz Roja.)
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⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAntes íbamos al hospital todos los días.(Antes íbamos al hospital todos los días.)
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⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAntes eras jefe del equipo de emergencia.(Antes eras jefe del equipo de emergencia.)
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⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAntes iba a urgencias en metro.(Antes iba a urgencias en metro.)
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⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAntes veíamos muchos casos difíciles en el trabajo.(Antes veíamos muchos casos difíciles en el trabajo.)
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⇒ _______________________________________________ ExampleAntes mis compañeros eran muy rápidos y veían todos los detalles.(Antes mis compañeros eran muy rápidos y veían todos los detalles.)
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