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Conjugation Chart

“Enseñar” (to teach) in the Imperfect Tense

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Understanding the Imperfect Tense of “Enseñar”

The Imperfect Tense of enseñar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example: Yo enseñaba español a mis amigos. (I used to teach Spanish to my friends.)

Enseñar is a regular -ar verb, so its conjugations in the Imperfect Tense follow the regular pattern for that verb type.

How to Use Enseñar in the Imperfect Tense

The imperfect tense of enseñar is used to describe ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions in the past.

Describing an ongoing action in the past: For example, Yo enseñaba español a mis amigos. (I was teaching Spanish to my friends.)

Describing a repeated or habitual action in the past: For example, Mis padres enseñaban a cocinar los fines de semana. (My parents used to teach cooking on weekends.)

Describing a past action without a specific beginning or end: For example, Cuando era joven, enseñaba baile. (When I was young, I taught dance.)

Describing a past action interrupted by another action: For example, Enseñaba matemáticas cuando sonó el timbre. (I was teaching math when the bell rang.)

Describing a past action that was a habit or routine: For example, Cada verano, enseñaba natación a los niños. (Every summer, I used to teach swimming to kids.)

Describing a past action that was a state or condition: For example, Enseñaba con mucha paciencia. (I taught with a lot of patience.)

Real Life Examples of Enseñar in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, mi abuela enseñaba a cocinar a todos sus nietos. (When she was a child, my grandmother taught all her grandchildren how to cook.)

El profesor de matemáticas explicaba los problemas con mucha paciencia. (The math teacher explained the problems very patiently.)

En la escuela, aprendíamos sobre la historia de nuestro país. (At school, we learned about the history of our country.)

Mis padres me enseñaban a ser respetuoso con los demás. (My parents taught me to be respectful to others.)

El entrenador nos enseñaba nuevas técnicas de defensa personal. (The coach taught us new self-defense techniques.)

En la universidad, los profesores enseñaban con pasión sus materias. (At the university, the professors taught their subjects with passion.)

Mis abuelos nos enseñaban a valorar las tradiciones familiares. (My grandparents taught us to value family traditions.)

El instructor de yoga enseñaba técnicas de respiración profunda. (The yoga instructor taught deep breathing techniques.)

En el taller de arte, aprendíamos diferentes técnicas de pintura. (In the art workshop, we learned different painting techniques.)

La maestra enseñaba a los niños a leer y escribir con paciencia. (The teacher patiently taught the children how to read and write.)

Mis tíos nos enseñaban a pescar cuando íbamos de vacaciones. (My uncles taught us how to fish when we went on vacation.)

En el curso de idiomas, aprendíamos vocabulario y gramática nuevos. (In the language course, we learned new vocabulary and grammar.)

El chef enseñaba a preparar platos gourmet en su restaurante. (The chef taught how to prepare gourmet dishes in his restaurant.)

Mis padres nos enseñaban a ser independientes y responsables. (My parents taught us to be independent and responsible.)

En la clase de baile, aprendíamos nuevos pasos y coreografías. (In the dance class, we learned new steps and choreographies.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Enseñar (to teach) in the Imperfect 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.