The Imperfect Tense of manejar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example: Yo manejaba al trabajo todos los días. (I used to drive to work every day.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Manejar (to drive) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

Driving or operating a vehicle: Por ejemplo, Cuando era niño, manejaba el carro de mi papá por la finca. (When I was a child, I used to drive my dad’s car around the farm.)

Managing or handling something: Por ejemplo, En mi trabajo anterior, manejaba las finanzas de la empresa. (In my previous job, I handled the company’s finances.)

Controlling or manipulating: Por ejemplo, El ventrílocuo manejaba hábilmente a su muñeco. (The ventriloquist skillfully manipulated his puppet.)

Slang: Driving under the influence: Por ejemplo, Anoche manejaba borracho y me detuvieron. (Last night I was driving drunk and got pulled over.)

Slang: Handling a situation: Por ejemplo, No te preocupes, yo manejo esto. (Don’t worry, I got this handled.)

Examples

Examples of Manejar in the Imperfect Tense

Yo manejaba con cuidado por las calles llenas de baches. (I was driving carefully on the pothole-filled streets.)

Ella manejaba a casa después del trabajo todos los días. (She was driving home from work every day.)

Nosotros manejábamos muy lento debido al tráfico pesado. (We were driving very slowly due to heavy traffic.)

¿Manejabas tú cuando ocurrió el accidente? (Were you driving when the accident happened?)

Ellos manejaban con precaución por la carretera sinuosa. (They were driving cautiously on the winding road.)

Antes, manejaba un auto deportivo, pero ahora manejo una camioneta familiar. (Before, I used to drive a sports car, but now I drive a family truck.)

Cuando era joven, manejaba como un loco, pero ahora soy más prudente. (When I was young, I used to drive like a maniac, but now I’m more cautious.)

Mi hermano manejaba el camión de mudanza mientras yo cargaba las cajas. (My brother was driving the moving truck while I loaded the boxes.)

Aunque manejaba con cuidado, no pude evitar chocar con el otro vehículo. (Although I was driving carefully, I couldn’t avoid crashing into the other vehicle.)

En la película, el protagonista manejaba un auto clásico por las calles de la ciudad. (In the movie, the protagonist was driving a classic car through the city streets.)

Mis amigos y yo manejábamos por la costa, disfrutando de las vistas panorámicas. (My friends and I were driving along the coast, enjoying the scenic views.)

El repartidor manejaba de un lado a otro, entregando paquetes por toda la ciudad. (The delivery person was driving back and forth, delivering packages all over the city.)

Cuando era estudiante, manejaba un viejo auto destartalado, pero funcionaba. (When I was a student, I used to drive an old beat-up car, but it worked.)

A veces, manejaba sin rumbo fijo, solo para despejar mi mente. (Sometimes, I would drive aimlessly, just to clear my mind.)

El instructor manejaba lentamente mientras enseñaba a su alumno las reglas de tránsito. (The instructor was driving slowly while teaching his student the traffic rules.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Manejar (to drive) 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.