The Imperfect Tense of quitarse is used to describe an ongoing or repeated action in the past, for example, Me quitaba los zapatos cuando llegaba a casa. (I would take off my shoes when I arrived home.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Quitarse (to take off) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The imperfect tense of quitarse is used to describe an ongoing or repeated action in the past.

To take off or remove clothing: For example, Me quitaba la chaqueta cuando llegaba a casa. (I would take off my jacket when I got home.)

To remove or get rid of something: For example, Quitaba la basura todos los días. (I would take out the trash every day.)

To stop doing something (idiomatic): For example, ¿Por qué te quitabas de la fiesta tan temprano? (Why did you leave the party so early?)

To distance oneself (figurative): For example, Me quitaba de las malas compañías. (I would distance myself from bad influences.)

To remove makeup or grooming (colloquial): For example, Me quitaba el maquillaje antes de acostarme. (I would remove my makeup before going to bed.)

To undress or get naked (rude): For example, Se quitaba la ropa en público, qué vergüenza. (He would get undressed in public, how embarrassing.)

Examples

Examples of Quitarse in the Imperfect Tense

Yo me quitaba los zapatos al llegar a casa después de un largo día de trabajo. (I would take off my shoes when I got home after a long day at work.)

Antes de entrar a la piscina, ella se quitaba la ropa y se ponía el traje de baño. (Before going into the pool, she would take off her clothes and put on her swimsuit.)

Cuando hacía mucho calor, me quitaba la chaqueta para refrescarme. (When it was very hot, I would take off my jacket to cool down.)

En la peluquería, el estilista le quitaba las puntas dañadas al cabello de la clienta. (At the hair salon, the stylist would trim the client’s damaged split ends.)

Durante el entrenamiento, los atletas se quitaban los zapatos deportivos para hacer ejercicios de estiramiento. (During training, the athletes would take off their athletic shoes to do stretching exercises.)

Antes de acostarse, mi abuela se quitaba las joyas y las guardaba en su joyero. (Before going to bed, my grandmother would take off her jewelry and put it in her jewelry box.)

Cuando nos quitábamos los abrigos en la fiesta, dejábamos nuestras pertenencias en el guardarropa. (When we would take off our coats at the party, we would leave our belongings in the cloakroom.)

El mecánico se quitaba el overol sucio después de terminar de reparar el automóvil. (The mechanic would take off his dirty overalls after finishing repairing the car.)

Antes de entrar a la mezquita, todos se quitaban los zapatos por respeto a las tradiciones religiosas. (Before entering the mosque, everyone would take off their shoes out of respect for religious traditions.)

Cuando me quitaba las gafas de sol, mis ojos tardaban un momento en adaptarse a la luz interior. (When I would take off my sunglasses, my eyes would take a moment to adjust to the indoor light.)

En el vestuario del gimnasio, los clientes se quitaban la ropa y se cambiaban a la ropa deportiva. (In the gym locker room, customers would take off their clothes and change into workout clothes.)

Antes de entrar a la casa, me quitaba los zapatos sucios para no ensuciar el piso. (Before entering the house, I would take off my dirty shoes so as not to get the floor dirty.)

Después de un día agotador, me quitaba el reloj y lo dejaba en la mesita de noche. (After an exhausting day, I would take off my watch and leave it on the nightstand.)

Cuando se quitaban los guantes de jardinería, mis padres se lavaban las manos con jabón. (When they would take off their gardening gloves, my parents would wash their hands with soap.)

En la playa, los niños se quitaban las camisetas y corrían hacia el agua para refrescarse. (At the beach, the kids would take off their shirts and run towards the water to cool off.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Quitarse (to take off) 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.