The Imperfect Tense of contar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example: Cuando era niño, mi abuela me contaba cuentos todas las noches. (When I was a child, my grandmother used to tell me stories every night.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Contar (to count, tell) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

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

Narrating past events: For example, Cuando era niño, contaba historias a mis hermanos. (When I was a child, I used to tell stories to my siblings.)

Expressing age: For example, Ella contaba 25 años cuando se casó. (She was 25 years old when she got married.)

Telling time: For example, Contábamos los minutos para que llegara el fin de semana. (We were counting down the minutes until the weekend arrived.)

Describing physical or emotional states: For example, Contaba con tu apoyo en ese momento difícil. (I was counting on your support during that difficult time.)

Expressing repeated actions: For example, De pequeño, contaba ovejas para conciliar el sueño. (As a child, I used to count sheep to fall asleep.)

Slang/Idiomatic usage: For example, ¡Cuenta con ello, tío! (Count on it, dude! – meaning “you can be sure of it”)

Examples

Examples of Contar in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, mi abuela contaba cuentos fascinantes sobre su vida en el campo. (When I was a child, my grandmother used to tell fascinating stories about her life in the countryside.)

Mis amigos y yo contábamos los días que faltaban para las vacaciones de verano. (My friends and I used to count down the days until summer vacation.)

En la reunión familiar, todos contaban anécdotas graciosas sobre el tío Pedro. (At the family gathering, everyone was telling funny anecdotes about Uncle Pedro.)

Ella contaba con el apoyo de sus padres para seguir sus sueños. (She counted on the support of her parents to pursue her dreams.)

Vosotros contabais chistes malos durante el viaje, ¿verdad? (You guys used to tell bad jokes during the trip, right?)

En la oficina, contábamos los días que faltaban para el próximo día festivo. (At the office, we used to count down the days until the next holiday.)

Cuando éramos jóvenes, contábamos las estrellas en el cielo nocturno. (When we were young, we used to count the stars in the night sky.)

Mi hermano contaba mentiras para evitar los problemas. (My brother used to tell lies to avoid trouble.)

Ustedes contaban con nuestro apoyo incondicional, sin importar qué. (You could count on our unconditional support, no matter what.)

En la escuela, contábamos los minutos que faltaban para el recreo. (At school, we used to count down the minutes until recess.)

Ella contaba cada centavo para ahorrar dinero para sus vacaciones. (She used to count every penny to save money for her vacation.)

Vosotros contabais chistes subidos de tono en las fiestas, ¿no? (You guys used to tell off-color jokes at parties, didn’t you?)

Mis abuelos contaban historias de su juventud en la granja. (My grandparents used to tell stories about their youth on the farm.)

Nosotros contábamos las horas que faltaban para el fin de semana. (We used to count down the hours until the weekend.)

Tú contabas tus pasos al caminar, ¿verdad? Era un hábito curioso. (You used to count your steps while walking, didn’t you? It was a curious habit.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Contar (to count, tell) 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.