Opening the book…
Throughout units 9 and 10 you have been learning how to use both the preterit and imperfect and have seen how they can be used together to tell about past events. In this module, you will focus on a few more reasons you can use the preterit or imperfect forms.
Review the video about Frida Kahlo from 10.4 En Contexto and then look at the following examples below.
El pretérito
I. Describing past completed actions: Actions that are completed one time fit into this category.
Narrations can also contain events that advance the story (ie- one action is completed before the next action begins). The order is important to the chain of events in the story.
Modelo:
Frida se casó con Diego Rivera. (She got married at this particular time.)
Se divorciaron, pero se casaron de nuevo un año después. (A series of completed events: they divorced, then got married a year later.)
II. Describing the beginning or end of an action
Modelo:
Frida se lastimó y casi se murió. (the accident marked a clear endpoint)
Frida falleció con solo 47 años. (clear end of life)
III: Describing an interruption (a one-time occurrence)
Modelo:
Frida estaba en camino a casa cuando tuvo un terrible accidente. (The imperfect "estaba" describes what was in progress; the preterite "tuvo" is the one-time interruption)
Describing abrupt changes in emotions often fit into this section.
Modelo:
Me puse triste cuando vi el autorretrato de Frida Kahlo. — I became sad when I saw Frida Kahlo's self-portrait.
🔑 Frases útiles para las interrupciones
| de repente… | suddenly… |
| en ese momento… | at that moment… |
| de pronto… | all of a sudden… |
| de golpe… | all at once / out of nowhere… |
| inesperadamente… | unexpectedly… |
| sin avisar… | without warning… |
| cuando... | when... |
El imperfecto
I. Describing an habitual past action
Modelo:
A Frida le encantaban mucho los animales y la naturaleza. (This was an ongoing, repeated feeling throughout her life)
II. Describing actions in progress
Modelo:
Frida estaba postrada en cama pero continuaba pintando para conectar con el mundo exterior. (Both actions were ongoing at the same time)
III: Describing background information (setting, time, weather, age, etc).
Typically the order in which these descriptions are presented are often unimportant.
Modelo:
Frida estaba en camino a casa... (setting the scene)
El arte de Frida demostraba sus luchas y dolor. (ongoing characteristic)
Frida y Diego tenían una relación muy tormentosa. (background description of their relationship)
Describing emotional states often fit into this section as well.
Modelo:
Me sentía tranquilo/a cuando miraba el mural. — I felt calm when I was looking at the mural.
Estaba fascinado/a con los colores de la pintura. — I was fascinated by the colors of the painting.
Use the following cheat sheet to describe the scene:
Te toca:
¿Puedes identificar el pretérito e el imperfecto? Después, da una razón para los usos del pretérito o imperfecto abajo.
El autobús chocó con un tranvía.
a) Pretérito
b) Imperfecto
- Answer
-
a) Pretérito: completed, one-time action that advances the story
En muchos de sus autorretratos se veía su imagen rodeada de sus animales favoritos.
a) Pretérito
b) Imperfecto
- Answer
-
b) Imperfecto: habitual/repeated action — this appeared across many paintings
El arte de Frida fue creado desde la perspectiva de su cama.
a) Pretérito
b) Imperfecto
- Answer
-
a) Pretérito: completed, one-time creation
El autobús en que ella viajaba chocó con un tranvía.
a) Pretérito
b) Imperfecto
- Answer
-
b) Imperfecto: action in progress — she was in the middle of traveling when the crash happened
This page titled 10.4.1: Gramática was last modified on Mon, 03 Aug 2026 18:48:48 GMT and is shared under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Amanda Hadley and Kelsey Harper.
The book could not be loaded just now.