tenere imperfect tense conjugation
Tenere (to hold/keep) in the imperfect tense: tenevo, tenevi, teneva, tenevamo, tenevate, tenevano.
Imperfetto Imperfect
| io | |
|---|---|
| tu | |
| lui/lei | |
| noi | |
| voi | |
| loro |
ending regular · irr breaks the pattern · tap a form to hear it
When to use the imperfect tense
The imperfetto describes the past as background: habits (“used to”), ongoing actions and descriptions: “Da bambino giocavo a calcio.”
How it is formed
Regular endings: -are → avo, avi, ava, avamo, avate, avano; -ere → evo…; -ire → ivo…. Essere is irregular (ero, eri, era…); fare, dire and bere use their old stems (facevo, dicevo, bevevo).
Tenere is regular here, so it is a good model for other verbs of the same class.
Tenere in a sentence
- Tengo il bambino in braccio.I hold the baby in my arms.
- Ho tenuto la porta aperta.I kept the door open.
Irregular like 'venire' (tengo, tieni); stem change in present.
FAQ
What is the imperfect tense of tenere?
Tenere in the Italian imperfect tense: io tenevo, tu tenevi, lui/lei teneva, noi tenevamo, voi tenevate, loro tenevano.
Is tenere irregular in the imperfect tense?
No. In the imperfect tense tenere takes the regular endings for its verb class, so tenevo follows the same pattern as any regular verb.
When do you use the Italian imperfect tense?
The imperfetto describes the past as background: habits (“used to”), ongoing actions and descriptions: “Da bambino giocavo a calcio.”
How is the imperfect tense formed?
Regular endings: -are → avo, avi, ava, avamo, avate, avano; -ere → evo…; -ire → ivo…. Essere is irregular (ero, eri, era…); fare, dire and bere use their old stems (facevo, dicevo, bevevo).
Full tenere conjugation, all tenses →
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