The Imperfect Tense of cortar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Yo cortaba el césped todos los sábados. (I used to mow the lawn every Saturday.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cortar (to cut) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

To cut: For example, Yo cortaba el césped todos los sábados. (I used to cut the grass every Saturday.)

To interrupt: For example, Ella siempre me cortaba cuando hablaba. (She would always interrupt me when I was speaking.)

To stop (a relationship): For example, Cortábamos cada dos meses. (We used to break up every two months.) Slang.

To cut off (electricity, water, etc.): For example, Nos cortaban la luz si no pagábamos la factura. (They would cut off our electricity if we didn’t pay the bill.)

To cut class: For example, De joven, cortaba clases seguido. (When I was young, I used to cut classes often.) Colloquial.

Examples

Examples of Cortar in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, cortaba el césped todos los fines de semana. (When I was a child, I used to mow the lawn every weekend.)

Mi abuela cortaba las verduras frescas para la cena. (My grandmother used to chop the fresh vegetables for dinner.)

Él cortaba el papel con mucho cuidado para hacer figuras de origami. (He used to cut the paper very carefully to make origami figures.)

Ella cortaba las uñas de su perro cada mes. (She used to trim her dog’s nails every month.)

Nosotros cortábamos leña para la chimenea en invierno. (We used to chop firewood for the fireplace in winter.)

Ellos cortaban el cabello de sus hijos en casa para ahorrar dinero. (They used to cut their children’s hair at home to save money.)

Tú cortabas las naranjas en gajos para el desayuno. (You used to cut the oranges into wedges for breakfast.)

¿Cortabas las cartas antes de repartirlas? (Expresión idiomática que significa hacer trampa) (Did you used to cut the cards before dealing them? (Idiomatic expression meaning to cheat))

Ella cortaba la comunicación cada vez que discutían. (Expresión idiomática que significa terminar una conversación abruptamente) (She used to cut off communication whenever they argued. (Idiomatic expression meaning to abruptly end a conversation))

Los jardineros cortaban los arbustos para mantener el jardín ordenado. (The gardeners used to trim the bushes to keep the garden tidy.)

Yo cortaba las servilletas de papel en forma de corazones para las cenas románticas. (I used to cut the paper napkins into heart shapes for romantic dinners.)

Ellas cortaban las puntas abiertas de su cabello cada dos meses. (They used to trim their split ends every two months.)

Tú cortabas las esquinas al doblar para ahorrar tiempo. (Expresión idiomática que significa tomar un atajo) (You used to cut corners when turning to save time. (Idiomatic expression meaning to take a shortcut))

Nosotros cortábamos las tarjetas de crédito después de pagar la deuda. (We used to cut up the credit cards after paying off the debt.)

Ellos cortaban la cuerda cuando escalaban para asegurar su descenso. (They used to cut the rope when climbing to secure their descent.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cortar (to cut) 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.