The Imperfect Tense of Criarse is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Cuando era niño, me criaba en el campo. (When I was a child, I grew up in the countryside.)

Criarse is a regular -ar verb, so its Imperfect Tense conjugations follow the same pattern as other verbs in this category.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Criarse (to grow up) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

To be raised or brought up: For example, Cuando era niño, me criaba en la ciudad. (When I was a child, I was raised in the city.)

To grow up: For example, Mis hermanos se criaban en un ambiente muy estricto. (My siblings grew up in a very strict environment.)

To be nurtured or nourished: For example, Las plantas se criaban con mucho cuidado en el invernadero. (The plants were nurtured with great care in the greenhouse.)

To raise or breed (animals): For example, En la granja, se criaban vacas y gallinas. (On the farm, cows and chickens were raised.)

To develop or form (colloquial): For example, En esa época, se criaban muchos malos hábitos. (In that time, many bad habits were formed.)

Examples

Examples of Criarse in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, me criaba en un pequeño pueblo. (When I was a child, I was raised in a small town.)

Mis abuelos se criaban en una granja y trabajaban duro. (My grandparents were raised on a farm and worked hard.)

Ella se criaba con valores tradicionales. (She was raised with traditional values.)

Nosotros nos criábamos en un ambiente humilde pero amoroso. (We were raised in a humble but loving environment.)

Ellos se criaban en la ciudad y disfrutaban de todas las comodidades. (They were raised in the city and enjoyed all the amenities.)

Tú te criabas con mucha libertad, ¿verdad? (You were raised with a lot of freedom, right?)

Yo me criaba en un hogar bilingüe, por eso hablo dos idiomas. (I was raised in a bilingual home, that’s why I speak two languages.)

Mis primos se criaban en un rancho y aprendieron a montar a caballo desde pequeños. (My cousins were raised on a ranch and learned to ride horses from a young age.)

Ella se criaba con mucha disciplina, por eso es tan responsable. (She was raised with a lot of discipline, that’s why she’s so responsible.)

Ustedes se criaban en un ambiente muy creativo, ¿no? (You were raised in a very creative environment, weren’t you?)

Ellas se criaban en un barrio humilde pero siempre soñaban en grande. (They were raised in a humble neighborhood but always dreamed big.)

Yo me criaba con la idea de que el estudio era lo más importante. (I was raised with the idea that studying was the most important thing.)

Tú te criabas con mucha libertad, por eso eres tan independiente. (You were raised with a lot of freedom, that’s why you’re so independent.)

Nosotros nos criábamos en un ambiente muy religioso. (We were raised in a very religious environment.)

Ellos se criaban en una familia numerosa y aprendieron a compartir desde pequeños. (They were raised in a large family and learned to share from a young age.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Criarse (to grow up) 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.