The Imperfect Tense of practicar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Yo practicaba español todos los días. (I used to practice Spanish every day.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Practicar (to practice) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

Ongoing action in the past: For example, Yo practicaba español cuando vivía en México. (I was practicing Spanish when I lived in Mexico.)

Repeated or habitual action in the past: For example, De niño, practicaba fútbol todos los fines de semana. (As a child, I used to practice soccer every weekend.)

Description in the past: For example, Mi hermano practicaba mucho para las competencias de natación. (My brother practiced a lot for the swimming competitions.)

Idiomatic usage: For example, Practicaba la paciencia con mi hijo travieso. (I practiced patience with my mischievous son.) This means “I had to be patient with my mischievous son.”

Colloquial usage: For example, ¿Practicabas la paja anoche? (Were you practicing the hand job last night?) This is a rude way of asking if someone was masturbating.

Examples

Examples of Practicar in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, practicaba deportes todos los días. (When I was a child, I practiced sports every day.)

Mis abuelos practicaban la jardinería como pasatiempo. (My grandparents practiced gardening as a hobby.)

El equipo practicaba mucho para el campeonato. (The team practiced a lot for the championship.)

Ella practicaba yoga por las mañanas para relajarse. (She practiced yoga in the mornings to relax.)

Nosotros practicábamos español con un tutor en línea. (We practiced Spanish with an online tutor.)

Tú practicabas la guitarra todas las noches, ¿verdad? (You practiced the guitar every night, right?)

Ellos practicaban baile en su tiempo libre. (They practiced dancing in their free time.)

¿Practicabas algún deporte cuando eras joven? (Did you practice any sports when you were young?)

Mi hermana practicaba mucho sus líneas antes de la obra de teatro. (My sister practiced her lines a lot before the play.)

En la universidad, practicábamos presentaciones para prepararnos para el mundo laboral. (In college, we practiced presentations to prepare for the working world.)

Mis amigos y yo practicábamos nuestro español hablando entre nosotros. (My friends and I practiced our Spanish by speaking to each other.)

Los chicos practicaban parkour en el parque los fines de semana. (The guys practiced parkour in the park on weekends.)

Ella practicaba meditación para controlar su estrés. (She practiced meditation to control her stress.)

Cuando era joven, practicaba artes marciales como un hobby. (When I was young, I practiced martial arts as a hobby.)

En la empresa, practicábamos simulacros de emergencia regularmente. (At the company, we practiced emergency drills regularly.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Practicar (to practice) in the Imperfect Tense 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.