The Imperfect Tense of castigar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Mis padres me castigaban cuando llegaba tarde a casa. (My parents used to punish me when I came home late.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Castigar (to punish) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

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

Punishing or disciplining: For example, Mis padres me castigaban cuando me portaba mal. (My parents used to punish me when I misbehaved.)

Reprimanding or scolding: For example, El profesor castigaba a los estudiantes que no hacían la tarea. (The teacher used to scold the students who didn’t do their homework.)

Inflicting pain or suffering (figurative): For example, El sol castigaba sin piedad a los caminantes. (The sun relentlessly punished the hikers.)

Colloquial usage (rude): For example, ¡Castigaba a esa pelota cada vez que la golpeaba! (I was really smashing that ball every time I hit it!)

Examples

Examples of Castigar in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, mi padre siempre castigaba mis travesuras. (When I was a child, my father always punished my mischief.)

La maestra castigaba a los alumnos que no hacían la tarea. (The teacher punished the students who didn’t do their homework.)

El entrenador castigaba a los jugadores que llegaban tarde a la práctica. (The coach punished the players who arrived late to practice.)

Mis padres castigaban mis mentiras con tareas adicionales. (My parents punished my lies with extra chores.)

El jefe castigaba a los empleados que no cumplían con sus obligaciones. (The boss punished the employees who didn’t fulfill their duties.)

En la cárcel, el guardia castigaba a los presos que causaban problemas. (In prison, the guard punished the inmates who caused trouble.)

Vosotros castigabais a vuestros hijos cuando se portaban mal. (You (plural) punished your children when they misbehaved.)

Ellos castigaban a sus mascotas cuando hacían desorden. (They punished their pets when they made a mess.)

Tú castigabas a tu hermano menor por desobedecerte. (You punished your younger brother for disobeying you.)

Nosotros castigábamos a nuestros hijos quitándoles sus juguetes favoritos. (We punished our children by taking away their favorite toys.)

El gobierno castigaba a los ciudadanos que violaban las leyes. (The government punished citizens who violated the laws.)

La iglesia castigaba a los fieles que no seguían los mandamientos. (The church punished the faithful who didn’t follow the commandments.)

El rey castigaba a los súbditos que se rebelaban contra su autoridad. (The king punished the subjects who rebelled against his authority.)

Yo castigaba a mis hijos cuando se peleaban entre ellos. (I punished my children when they fought with each other.)

El juez castigaba a los criminales con penas de cárcel. (The judge punished criminals with prison sentences.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Castigar (to punish) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American 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.