-ia/-ias/-ia/-íamos/-íeis/-iam (imperfeito)

Pretérito Imperfeito -ER/-IR Verbs

Level 2

The Pretérito Imperfeito is the 'past-in-progress' tense. For regular -er and -ir verbs, you remove the infinitive ending and add: -ia, -ias, -ia, -íamos, -íeis, -iam.

How It Works

The Pretérito Imperfeito is essential for storytelling and describing past states. For regular verbs ending in -er (like comer) and -ir (like abrir), the endings are identical.

1. Regular Conjugation Pattern:

  • Eu comia / abria
  • Tu comias / abrias
  • Você/Ele/Ela comia / abria
  • Nós comíamos / abríamos (Note the accent!)
  • Vós comíeis / abríeis (Archaic/Formal)
  • Vocês/Eles/Elas comiam / abriam

2. The Four Irregular Verbs:
There are only four irregular verbs in this tense. You should become confident with these specific forms:

  • ser (era, eras, era, éramos, éreis, eram)
  • ter (tinha, tinhas, tinha, tínhamos, tínheis, tinham)
  • vir (vinha, vinhas, vinha, vínhamos, vínheis, vinham)
  • pôr (punha, punhas, punha, púnhamos, púnheis, punham)

3. Key Uses:

  • Habits: Actions repeated in the past (e.g., 'I used to eat').
  • Background: Setting the scene (e.g., 'It was raining when...').
  • Politeness: Softening requests (e.g., 'I wanted to ask...' instead of 'I want').
  • Future-in-the-Past: In casual speech, it often replaces the Conditional (e.g., 'He said he would come').

Examples (5)

  1. Quando eu era criança, comia muitos doces.

    When I was a child, I used to eat a lot of sweets.

    Word by Word: When I was child, ate many sweets.

    Demonstrates a past habit using the verb 'comer' (-er). Note that 'era' is the irregular form of ser.

  2. Nós vivíamos em Lisboa naquela época.

    We were living in Lisbon at that time.

    Word by Word: We lived in Lisbon in-that epoch.

    Shows a continuous state or background description using 'viver' (-er).

  3. Eu queria pedir um favor, se for possível.

    I would like to ask a favor, if possible.

    Word by Word: I wanted to-ask a favor, if be possible.

    Uses the Imperfeito of 'querer' to express a polite request in the present.

  4. Eles abriam a loja todos os dias às oito.

    They used to open the store every day at eight.

    Word by Word: They opened the store all the days at eight.

    Demonstrates a repeated action with the verb 'abrir' (-ir).

  5. Eu lia o jornal quando você ligou.

    I was reading the newspaper when you called.

    Word by Word: I read the newspaper when you called.

    Shows an ongoing action interrupted by a completed event.

Common Mistakes

  • Forgetting the written accent on the 'nós' form.

    Nós comiamos muito.
    Nós comíamos muito.

    The 'i' in the -íamos ending must always have an acute accent to maintain the correct stress.

  • Using -ar endings (-ava) for -er/-ir verbs.

    Eu comava maçãs.
    Eu comia maçãs.

    Learners often mix up the endings. Remember: -ar verbs use -ava, while -er and -ir verbs use -ia.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

-ia/-ias/-ia/-íamos/-íeis/-iam (imperfeito)Level 2Pretérito Imperfeito -ER/-IR Verbs

Learn This First

To learn the imperfect tense for -ER and -IR verbs, you first need to be comfortable with the present tense forms of these verb groups to identify their stems. Additionally, having already learned the -AR imperfect endings helps in understanding the function and usage of this past tense.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

-ia