The Imperfect Tense of Despertar is used to describe actions that were ongoing or repeated in the past, for example, Yo despertaba a las 7 cada mañana. (I used to wake up at 7 every morning.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Despertar (to wake up) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The imperfect tense of despertar is used to describe actions that were ongoing or repeated in the past.

Describing an ongoing action in the past: For example, Yo despertaba a las 6 a.m. para ir al trabajo. (I used to wake up at 6 a.m. to go to work.)

Describing a repeated or habitual action in the past: For example, Cuando era niño, despertaba temprano los fines de semana. (When I was a child, I used to wake up early on weekends.)

Describing a state or condition in the past: For example, Despertaba con mucha energía después de dormir bien. (I used to wake up with a lot of energy after sleeping well.)

Describing an interrupted or unfinished action in the past: For example, Despertaba cuando sonó la alarma, pero me quedé dormido de nuevo. (I was waking up when the alarm went off, but I fell asleep again.)

Idiomatic usage: For example, ¡Despierta, flojo! ¡Ya es tarde! (Wake up, lazy! It’s late already!) – Used to tell someone to pay attention or get moving.

Examples

Examples of Despertar in the Imperfect Tense

Yo despertaba temprano todos los días para ir al trabajo. (I used to wake up early every day to go to work.)

Cuando era niño, despertaba con el canto de los pájaros. (When I was a child, I would wake up to the singing of birds.)

Ella despertaba con pesadillas frecuentemente. (She would often wake up from nightmares.)

Mis abuelos despertaban al amanecer para trabajar en el campo. (My grandparents would wake up at dawn to work in the fields.)

Durante las vacaciones, despertábamos tarde y disfrutábamos del día. (During vacations, we would wake up late and enjoy the day.)

Cada vez que despertaba, me sentía renovado y lleno de energía. (Every time I woke up, I felt renewed and full of energy.)

En la universidad, despertaba con el ruido de los compañeros de cuarto. (In college, I would wake up to the noise of my roommates.)

Antes de que existieran los despertadores, la gente despertaba con el canto del gallo. (Before alarm clocks existed, people would wake up to the rooster’s crow.)

Cuando tenía insomnio, despertaba varias veces durante la noche. (When I had insomnia, I would wake up several times during the night.)

Los niños despertaban emocionados el día de Navidad. (The children would wake up excited on Christmas day.)

Siempre despertaba con dolor de cabeza después de una noche de fiesta. (I would always wake up with a headache after a night of partying.)

Cuando vivía en el campo, despertaba con el olor del pan recién horneado. (When I lived in the countryside, I would wake up to the smell of freshly baked bread.)

En los campamentos de verano, despertábamos con el sonido de la naturaleza. (At summer camps, we would wake up to the sounds of nature.)

Cada mañana, despertaba con ganas de enfrentar un nuevo día. (Every morning, I would wake up eager to face a new day.)

Cuando era pequeño, despertaba a mis padres muy temprano los fines de semana. (When I was little, I would wake up my parents very early on weekends.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Despertar (to wake up) 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.