The Imperfect Tense of Desear is used to express ongoing, repeated, or habitual desires in the past. For example, Cuando era niño, deseaba ser astronauta. (When I was a child, I desired to be an astronaut.)

Desear is a regular -ar verb, so its conjugation in the Imperfect Tense follows the standard pattern for this verb type.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Desear (to wish, desire) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

Expressing an ongoing desire in the past: For example, Cuando era niño, deseaba ser astronauta. (When I was a child, I desired to be an astronaut.)

Expressing a repeated or habitual desire in the past: For example, Siempre deseaba ir a la playa en verano. (I always desired to go to the beach in summer.)

Expressing a polite desire or wish: For example, Deseaba pedirle un favor. (I desired to ask you a favor.)

Expressing a strong desire or craving (colloquial): For example, Deseaba comerme una hamburguesa enorme. (I really craved eating a huge burger.)

Expressing sexual desire (rude): For example, Deseaba cogerla toda la noche. (I desired to fuck her all night.)

Examples

Examples of Desear in the Imperfect Tense

Yo deseaba viajar a América Latina desde hace mucho tiempo. (I had desired to travel to Latin America for a long time.)

Ella deseaba aprender español para comunicarse mejor con sus vecinos. (She desired to learn Spanish to communicate better with her neighbors.)

Nosotros deseábamos asistir al concierto, pero las entradas se agotaron. (We desired to attend the concert, but the tickets sold out.)

Ellos deseaban comprar una casa más grande para su familia creciente. (They desired to buy a bigger house for their growing family.)

Tú deseabas cambiar de trabajo, pero no encontrabas nada mejor. (You desired to change jobs, but you couldn’t find anything better.)

Mis amigos deseaban ir de fiesta, pero yo prefería quedarme en casa. (My friends desired to go out partying, but I preferred to stay home.)

¿Deseabas tomar un café conmigo? (¿Did you desire to have coffee with me?)

El equipo deseaba ganar el campeonato, pero perdieron en la final. (The team desired to win the championship, but they lost in the finals.)

Siempre deseaba ser escritor cuando era niño. (I always desired to be a writer when I was a kid.)

Mi hermana deseaba tener un perro, pero nuestros padres no la dejaban. (My sister desired to have a dog, but our parents wouldn’t let her.)

¿Deseabas algo más de la tienda? (Did you desire anything else from the store?)

Ellas deseaban viajar al extranjero, pero no tenían suficiente dinero. (They desired to travel abroad, but they didn’t have enough money.)

Yo deseaba aprender a tocar la guitarra, pero nunca tuve tiempo. (I desired to learn to play the guitar, but I never had time.)

Él deseaba conseguir un ascenso en su trabajo. (He desired to get a promotion at his job.)

Ustedes deseaban ir al cine, ¿verdad? (You all desired to go to the movies, right?)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Desear (to wish, desire) 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.