The Imperfect Tense of cantar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example: Cuando era niño, cantaba en el coro de la iglesia. (When I was a child, I used to sing in the church choir.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cantar (to sing) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

Singing or vocalizing: For example, Cuando era niño, cantaba en el coro de la iglesia. (When I was a child, I used to sing in the church choir.)

Telling or narrating: For example, Mi abuela siempre nos cantaba cuentos antes de dormir. (My grandmother would always tell us stories before bedtime.)

Revealing or disclosing (colloquial): For example, El soplón cantó todo lo que sabía a la policía. (The snitch spilled everything he knew to the police.)

Criticizing or complaining (colloquial): For example, Siempre estaba cantando por todo. (He was always complaining about everything.)

Examples

Examples of Cantar in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, cantaba en el coro de la iglesia. (When I was a child, I used to sing in the church choir.)

Mi abuela cantaba canciones tradicionales mientras cocinaba. (My grandmother sang traditional songs while she cooked.)

En la fiesta, todos cantaban y bailaban alegremente. (At the party, everyone was singing and dancing cheerfully.)

Ella cantaba en la ducha todas las mañanas. (She sang in the shower every morning.)

Los mariachis cantaban canciones románticas en el restaurante. (The mariachi band sang romantic songs in the restaurant.)

Nosotros cantábamos canciones de cuna para arrullar a nuestro bebé. (We sang lullabies to soothe our baby.)

Ellos cantaban en el karaoke todas las noches. (They sang at the karaoke bar every night.)

Tú cantabas muy bien en el coro de la escuela. (You used to sing very well in the school choir.)

Los fanáticos cantaban las canciones de su banda favorita a todo pulmón. (The fans sang their favorite band’s songs at the top of their lungs.)

Ella cantaba mientras lavaba los platos. (She sang while washing the dishes.)

Los niños cantaban canciones infantiles en el patio de recreo. (The children sang nursery rhymes on the playground.)

Yo cantaba en la ducha para practicar mi voz. (I sang in the shower to practice my voice.)

Ellas cantaban villancicos durante la época navideña. (They sang Christmas carols during the holiday season.)

Tú cantabas canciones de protesta en las manifestaciones. (You sang protest songs at the demonstrations.)

Los músicos callejeros cantaban y tocaban sus instrumentos en el parque. (The street musicians sang and played their instruments in the park.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cantar (to sing) 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.