The Imperfect Tense of cocinar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Yo cocinaba la cena todas las noches. (I used to cook dinner every night.)

Cocinar is a regular -ar verb, so its Imperfect conjugations follow the typical pattern for that verb type.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cocinar (to cook) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

The imperfect tense of cocinar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, as well as descriptions and states of being.

Cooking or preparing food: For example, Cuando era niño, mi abuela cocinaba todos los días. (When I was a child, my grandmother cooked every day.)

Habitual or repeated actions in the past: For example, De joven, cocinaba mucho porque me gustaba experimentar con recetas nuevas. (When I was young, I used to cook a lot because I liked to experiment with new recipes.)

Descriptions or states of being in the past: For example, La comida cocinaba lentamente en la olla. (The food was cooking slowly in the pot.)

Idiomatic or slang usage: For example, ¡Estaba cocinando de la emoción! (I was bursting with excitement! – literally “cooking with emotion”)

Examples

Examples of Cocinar in the Imperfect Tense

Yo cocinaba la cena todas las noches para mi familia. (I used to cook dinner every night for my family.)

Cuando éramos niños, mi hermana y yo cocinábamos galletas con nuestra abuela. (When we were kids, my sister and I used to bake cookies with our grandmother.)

Ellos cocinaban comida vegetariana los fines de semana. (They used to cook vegetarian food on weekends.)

Tú cocinabas unos platos deliciosos cuando vivías solo. (You used to cook some delicious dishes when you lived alone.)

Vosotros cocinabais la paella los domingos para toda la familia. (You all used to cook paella on Sundays for the whole family.)

Ustedes cocinaban comida típica de su país en las fiestas. (You all used to cook typical food from your country at parties.)

Ella cocinaba platos veganos para mantenerse saludable. (She used to cook vegan dishes to stay healthy.)

¿Cocinabas tú mismo cuando vivías en el apartamento pequeño? (Did you use to cook for yourself when you lived in the small apartment?)

En la universidad, mis compañeros de cuarto y yo cocinábamos juntos para ahorrar dinero. (In college, my roommates and I used to cook together to save money.)

Mis abuelos cocinaban comidas tradicionales durante las fiestas. (My grandparents used to cook traditional meals during holidays.)

Cuando cocinábamos en casa, siempre hacíamos demasiada comida. (When we used to cook at home, we always made too much food.)

Antes de tener hijos, cocinábamos platos elaborados los fines de semana. (Before having kids, we used to cook elaborate dishes on weekends.)

En el campamento de verano, los niños cocinaban sus propias comidas sobre una fogata. (At summer camp, the kids used to cook their own meals over a campfire.)

Mis padres cocinaban comidas caseras todos los días después del trabajo. (My parents used to cook homemade meals every day after work.)

Cuando vivía solo, cocinaba grandes cantidades de comida y congelaba las porciones extras. (When I lived alone, I used to cook large amounts of food and freeze the extra portions.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cocinar (to cook) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Imperfect tense is also known as the Past Imperfect, Descriptive Past, Past Progressive, or Imperfect Indicative in English, and as Pretérito Imperfecto, Copretérito, Imperfecto de Indicativo, or Pasado Descriptivo in Spanish.