The Imperfect Tense of encender is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Encendía la televisión todas las noches. (I used to turn on the TV every night.)

Encender is a regular -er verb, so its conjugations in the Imperfect Tense follow the regular pattern for this verb type.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Encender (to turn on) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

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

To light or turn on: For example, Cada noche encendía las velas para leer. (Every night I would light the candles to read.)

To ignite or set fire to: For example, Los manifestantes encendían hogueras en la calle. (The protesters were setting bonfires in the street.)

To turn on (electronics): For example, Siempre encendía la radio mientras cocinaba. (I would always turn on the radio while cooking.)

To excite or arouse (figurative): For example, Sus palabras encendían la pasión en mi corazón. (His words would ignite passion in my heart.)

To get angry or upset (colloquial): For example, Cada vez que le mencionaba el tema, se encendía. (Whenever I mentioned that topic, he would get upset.)

Examples

Examples of Encender in the Imperfect Tense

Yo encendía la televisión todas las noches para ver las noticias. (I used to turn on the TV every night to watch the news.)

Cuando era niño, encendía las luces de la casa al anochecer. (When I was a child, I would turn on the lights in the house at dusk.)

Mi abuela encendía la estufa a leña para calentar la casa en invierno. (My grandmother would light the wood stove to heat the house in winter.)

Ellos encendían las velas durante los apagones. (They would light candles during power outages.)

Tú encendías la chimenea los fines de semana para crear un ambiente acogedor. (You used to light the fireplace on weekends to create a cozy atmosphere.)

Nosotros encendíamos el aire acondicionado cuando hacía mucho calor. (We would turn on the air conditioning when it was very hot.)

Vosotros encendíais las luces navideñas en diciembre. (You all used to turn on the Christmas lights in December.)

Ella encendía incienso para aromatizar la casa. (She would light incense to scent the house.)

Ustedes encendían la parrilla los domingos para hacer una barbacoa. (You all would fire up the grill on Sundays for a barbecue.)

Yo encendía las velas durante las cenas románticas. (I would light candles during romantic dinners.)

Ellas encendían la chimenea eléctrica para crear un ambiente acogedor. (They used to turn on the electric fireplace to create a cozy atmosphere.)

Tú encendías el calentador de agua antes de ducharte. (You would turn on the water heater before showering.)

Nosotros encendíamos las luces de emergencia cuando se iba la luz. (We would turn on the emergency lights when the power went out.)

Vosotros encendíais la calefacción central en los meses fríos. (You all used to turn on the central heating during the cold months.)

Ellos encendían las lámparas de aceite cuando acampaban. (They would light oil lamps when camping.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Encender (to turn on) 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.