Knowing when to use the preterite or imperfect is key to talking about the past in Spanish. The goal of this preterite vs imperfect quiz is to help you get familiar with the situations that trigger one conjugation or the other.
Preterite vs Imperfect Quiz
En 1995, Lucía y yo ______ Argentina.
- A visitábamos
- B visitamos
Explanation: Unless it’s a recurring action, when talking about traveling in the past you’ll use the preterite tense. In this example, the time marker communicates exactly when this action took place.
Ese día, mis amigos ______ a desayunar al mercado.
- A fueron
- B iban
Explanation: Ese día indicates when the action occurred in the past. In this case, we’re talking about a concrete action that my friends did on that date.
De niños, a nosotros _____ mucho los dulces.
- A nos gustaron
- B nos gustaban
Explanation: Time markers that refer to your childhood are not precise. In other words, they don’t say exactly when an action began or ended. As a result, they’re triggers forto the imperfect tense.
El mercado ____ en el centro de la ciudad.
- A estuvo
- B estaba
Explanation: This example describes where something was located in the past. Since this is background information, you must use the imperfect tense.
Tú ______ a Juan el año pasado.
- A conocías
- B conociste
Explanation: ‘El año pasado’ is a specific time marker that triggers the preterite. Meeting Juan is a finished past action, meaning that you cannot change it.
Ustedes ____ todos los lunes.
- A estudiaban
- B estudiaron
Explanation: Todos los lunes, and similar time markers, refer to habits. In this example, such a habit was ‘studying Spanish’. Since the imperfect tense refers to past habits and routines, you must use estudiaban.
El edificio _____ grande y viejo.
- A fue
- B era
Explanation: The imperfect tense allows you to provide a description of how things used to be in the past. Because in this example you’re describing how the building was, you need to conjugate the verb in the imperfect tense.
El restaurante _____ muy lleno cuando _____.
- A fue / llegamos
- B estaba / llegamos
Explanation: The imperfect tense is used when providing background information about the past. In this case, how the restaurant was. The preterite, on the other hand, communicates what happened.
¿Dónde _____ mi teléfono?
- A ponías
- B pusiste
Explanation: Even though it doesn’t have time markers, this example refers to a one-time past action. If you choose the imperfect tense answer (‘ponías’), you’d imply that this person used to repeatedly misplace your phone over a long period of time.
Mi hermano ______ con Angélica.
- A se casó
- B se casaba
Explanation: Casarse is a complex action that people do a few times during their lifetime. Since it’s very specific, ‘casarse’ is always conjugated in the preterite tense.
¿Cuántos años _____ Yolanda en 1993?
- A tenía
- B tuvo
Explanation: In Spanish, we always use the imperfect tense to talk about age.
Hace dos años ____ a Vancouver. La ciudad ____ muy bonita.
- A iba / era
- B fui / era
Explanation: Hace dos años is a concise time marker, as a result, it must be followed by the preterite tense. On the other hand, the imperfect provides details about that past action. In this situation, it describes how the city was.
Mi abuelo siempre me ____ que tenía que estudiar.
- A dijo
- B decía
Explanation: Siempre is one of the time markers that triggers the imperfect in Spanish. Decía implies that your grandpa used to give you this advice all the time.
¿A qué hora ____ el paquete?
- A llegaba
- B llegó
Explanation: Llegó implies that this action (the arrival of the package) is a one-time action that is completed in the past. Choosing the imperfect tense would have implied that you received the same package on a regular basis.
Cuando eras niña, no _____ esa película.
- A te gustaba
- B te gustó
Explanation: Time markers that talk about your childhood trigger the imperfect tense because they do not have a specific ending or beginning. As a result, in this example, te gustaba is the right answer.
Quiz Results
| Question | Answer Given | Correct Answer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| En 1995, Lucía y yo ______ Argentina. | |||
| Ese día, mis amigos ______ a desayunar al mercado. | |||
| De niños, a nosotros _____ mucho los dulces. | |||
| El mercado ____ en el centro de la ciudad. | |||
| Tú ______ a Juan el año pasado. | |||
| Ustedes ____ todos los lunes. | |||
| El edificio _____ grande y viejo. | |||
| El restaurante _____ muy lleno cuando _____. | |||
| ¿Dónde _____ mi teléfono? | |||
| Mi hermano ______ con Angélica. | |||
| ¿Cuántos años _____ Yolanda en 1993? | |||
| Hace dos años ____ a Vancouver. La ciudad ____ muy bonita. | |||
| Mi abuelo siempre me ____ que tenía que estudiar. | |||
| ¿A qué hora ____ el paquete? | |||
| Cuando eras niña, no _____ esa película. |
Notes for the Preterite and Imperfect Tense
Here is a summary with the differences between the imperfect and the Spanish preterite.
- The preterite has many irregular verbs, whereas the imperfect only has three.
- Use the imperfect to talk about an ongoing action or event that was interrupted in the past.
- The preterite is a “perfect” tense, meaning that it refers to finished activities. In other words, you can pinpoint when something happened.
- The imperfect Spanish tense describes how places, people, or things used to be.
- When talking about actions, the imperfect refers to routines you used to do.
- The preterite works with specific dates or adverbs that convey exactly when an action took place.
You can find more thorough information about this lesson, feel free to check this guide on preterite vs imperfect.
If you’re ready to test your knowledge, take this preterite and imperfect practice quiz.