The Imperfect Tense of Arrepentirse is used to describe an ongoing or repeated action in the past, for example, Me arrepentía de haber mentido. (I regretted having lied.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Arrepentirse (to regret) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The imperfect tense of arrepentirse is used to describe an ongoing or repeated action of regretting or feeling remorse in the past.

Expressing regret or remorse: For example, Ella se arrepentía de haber mentido a sus padres. (She regretted having lied to her parents.) This is the most common usage, indicating a feeling of remorse or regret over a past action.

Describing a habitual action in the past: For example, De niño, siempre se arrepentía de portarse mal. (As a child, he would always regret misbehaving.) This usage refers to a repeated or habitual action of regretting something in the past.

Expressing repentance or contrition (religious context): For example, El pecador se arrepentía de sus malas acciones. (The sinner repented for his misdeeds.) In a religious context, it can convey a sense of repentance or contrition for one’s wrongdoings.

Colloquial/Slang usage: In some Latin American regions, arrepentirse can be used informally or jokingly to express regret over a trivial or humorous situation, like “Me arrepentí de haber comido tanto” (I regretted eating so much).

Examples

Examples of Arrepentirse in the Imperfect Tense

Yo me arrepentía de haber mentido a mi mamá. (I regretted having lied to my mom.)

Ella se arrepentía de no haber estudiado más para el examen. (She regretted not having studied more for the exam.)

Nosotros nos arrepentíamos de haber gastado tanto dinero en las vacaciones. (We regretted having spent so much money on vacation.)

Ellos se arrepentían de haber peleado con sus amigos. (They regretted having fought with their friends.)

Tú te arrepentías de no haber aprovechado la oportunidad laboral. (You regretted not having taken advantage of the job opportunity.)

Él se arrepentía de haber fumado tanto cuando era joven. (He regretted having smoked so much when he was young.)

Yo me arrepentía de no haber escuchado los consejos de mis padres. (I regretted not having listened to my parents’ advice.)

Ellas se arrepentían de haber comido demasiado en la fiesta. (They regretted having eaten too much at the party.)

Tú te arrepentías de haber dicho esas palabras hirientes. (You regretted having said those hurtful words.)

Él se arrepentía de no haber ahorrado más dinero para su retiro. (He regretted not having saved more money for his retirement.)

Nosotros nos arrepentíamos de haber perdido tanto tiempo en redes sociales. (We regretted having wasted so much time on social media.)

Ellos se arrepentían de no haber viajado más cuando eran jóvenes. (They regretted not having traveled more when they were young.)

Ella se arrepentía de haber dejado su trabajo anterior. (She regretted having left her previous job.)

Yo me arrepentía de no haber aprendido otro idioma cuando era niño. (I regretted not having learned another language when I was a child.)

Ellas se arrepentían de haber confiado en esa persona. (They regretted having trusted that person.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Arrepentirse (to regret) 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.