decir imperfect tense conjugation
Decir (to say/tell) in the imperfect tense: decía, decías, decía, decíamos, decíais, decían.
Pretérito imperfecto Imperfect
| yo | |
|---|---|
| tú | |
| él/ella/usted | |
| nosotros | |
| vosotros | |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes |
ending regular · irr breaks the pattern · tap a form to hear it
When to use the imperfect tense
The imperfect (pretérito imperfecto) describes the past as background: habits (“used to”), ongoing actions (“was doing”), descriptions, age and time. “Cuando era niño, vivía en Sevilla.”
How it is formed
Regular endings: -ar → aba, abas, aba, ábamos, abais, aban; -er/-ir → ía, ías, ía, íamos, íais, ían. Only three verbs are irregular in the imperfect: ser (era), ir (iba) and ver (veía).
Decir is regular here, so it is a good model for other verbs of the same class.
Read more: Preterite vs imperfect: when to use each
Decir in a sentence
- Digo la verdad siempre.I always tell the truth.
- Ella dijo que vendría.She said she would come.
Irregular yo form 'digo'; irregular preterite 'dijo'; e→i stem change.
FAQ
What is the imperfect tense of decir?
Decir in the Spanish imperfect tense: yo decía, tú decías, él/ella/usted decía, nosotros decíamos, vosotros decíais, ellos/ellas/ustedes decían.
Is decir irregular in the imperfect tense?
No. In the imperfect tense decir takes the regular endings for its verb class, so decía follows the same pattern as any regular verb.
When do you use the Spanish imperfect tense?
The imperfect (pretérito imperfecto) describes the past as background: habits (“used to”), ongoing actions (“was doing”), descriptions, age and time. “Cuando era niño, vivía en Sevilla.”
How is the imperfect tense formed?
Regular endings: -ar → aba, abas, aba, ábamos, abais, aban; -er/-ir → ía, ías, ía, íamos, íais, ían. Only three verbs are irregular in the imperfect: ser (era), ir (iba) and ver (veía).
Full decir conjugation, all tenses →
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