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Conjugation Chart

“Decir” (to say, tell) in the Imperfect Tense

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Understanding the Imperfect Tense of “Decir”

The Imperfect Tense of decir is used to describe ongoing, repeated, or habitual actions in the past, for example: Yo decía la verdad. (I used to tell the truth.)

Decir is a standard Spanish verb that follows the regular conjugation pattern of verbs ending in -ír in the Imperfect Tense, using the endings -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -ían.

How to Use Decir in the Imperfect Tense

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

Expressing an action in progress: For example, Yo te decía que no fueras. (I was telling you not to go.)

Describing habitual or repeated actions: For example, Ella me decía todos los días que estudiara más. (She used to tell me every day to study more.)

Expressing age, time, or circumstances in the past: For example, Tenía 10 años cuando me decían que comiera mis verduras. (I was 10 years old when they used to tell me to eat my vegetables.)

Expressing emotions, thoughts, or states of being in the past: For example, Siempre me decía que me amaba. (He/She always used to tell me that he/she loved me.)

Slang/Idiomatic usage: For example, ¿Qué me decías? (What were you saying? – used to express disbelief or challenge someone’s statement.)

Rude/Vulgar usage: For example, Siempre me decía que me fuera a la mierda. (He/She always used to tell me to go to hell.)

Real Life Examples of Decir in the Imperfect Tense

Yo decía que no quería ir a la fiesta, pero al final me convencieron. (I was saying that I didn’t want to go to the party, but in the end they convinced me.)

Ella decía mentiras todo el tiempo para evitar problemas. (She was telling lies all the time to avoid problems.)

Mis amigos decían que la película era aburrida, pero a mí me gustó. (My friends were saying that the movie was boring, but I liked it.)

El profesor decía que el examen iba a ser difícil, así que estudié mucho. (The teacher was saying that the exam was going to be difficult, so I studied a lot.)

Tú decías que no te gustaba el fútbol, pero ahora eres un fanático. (You were saying that you didn’t like soccer, but now you’re a fan.)

Ellos decían que la comida estaba rica, pero a mí no me convenció. (They were saying that the food was delicious, but it didn’t convince me.)

Mi mamá decía que tenía que limpiar mi habitación, pero siempre lo posponía. (My mom was saying that I had to clean my room, but I always postponed it.)

¿Recuerdas cuando decíamos que nunca nos íbamos a casar? Mira dónde estamos ahora. (Do you remember when we were saying that we would never get married? Look where we are now.)

El político decía que iba a mejorar la economía, pero sus promesas eran puras mentiras. (The politician was saying that he was going to improve the economy, but his promises were pure lies.)

Aunque decía que no tenía miedo, sus manos temblaban. (Although he was saying that he wasn’t afraid, his hands were shaking.)

La gente decía que el nuevo restaurante era caro, pero valía la pena. (People were saying that the new restaurant was expensive, but it was worth it.)

Siempre decía que iba a dejar de fumar, pero nunca lo lograba. (He was always saying that he was going to quit smoking, but he never managed to do it.)

Mi hermana decía que odiaba las matemáticas, pero era muy buena en esa materia. (My sister was saying that she hated math, but she was very good at it.)

El entrenador decía que teníamos que esforzarnos más en los entrenamientos. (The coach was saying that we had to put more effort into the training sessions.)

Aunque decía que estaba bien, se notaba que estaba triste por la ruptura. (Although he was saying that he was fine, it was clear that he was sad about the breakup.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Decir (to say, tell) in the Imperfect Tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian 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.