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Conjugation Chart

“Negar” (to deny) in the Imperfect Tense

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Understanding the Imperfect Tense of “Negar”

The Imperfect Tense of Negar is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Yo negaba que fuera culpable. (I denied that I was guilty.)

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

How to Use Negar in the Imperfect Tense

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

To deny or refuse: Por ejemplo, Siempre negaba ayudar con las tareas del hogar. (He always denied helping with household chores.)

To contradict or disagree: Por ejemplo, Ella negaba todo lo que él decía. (She contradicted everything he said.)

To reject or decline: Por ejemplo, El negaba cada invitación a salir. (He declined every invitation to go out.)

To withhold or refuse to give: Por ejemplo, La empresa negaba los beneficios a los empleados. (The company withheld benefits from employees.)

To express disbelief or skepticism (colloquial): Por ejemplo, ¿En serio? ¡Yo negaba! (Seriously? I don’t believe it!)

Real Life Examples of Negar in the Imperfect Tense

Yo negaba la invitación a la fiesta porque tenía mucho trabajo. (I was declining the invitation to the party because I had a lot of work.)

Ella negaba haber tomado el dinero de la cartera de su hermano. (She was denying having taken the money from her brother’s wallet.)

Nosotros negábamos la posibilidad de mudarnos a otra ciudad. (We were denying the possibility of moving to another city.)

Ellos negaban rotundamente las acusaciones de fraude. (They were flatly denying the fraud accusations.)

Tú negabas que te gustara esa persona, pero todos lo sabíamos. (You were denying that you liked that person, but we all knew it.)

Él negaba una y otra vez haber cometido el crimen. (He was denying over and over again having committed the crime.)

Ustedes negaban la evidencia científica sobre el cambio climático. (You were denying the scientific evidence about climate change.)

Yo negaba con la cabeza cuando me preguntaban si quería más comida. (I was shaking my head when they asked me if I wanted more food.)

Ella negaba cualquier responsabilidad en el accidente. (She was denying any responsibility in the accident.)

Nosotros negábamos la entrada a los manifestantes en el edificio. (We were denying entry to the protesters in the building.)

Ellos negaban haber visto u oído algo sospechoso. (They were denying having seen or heard anything suspicious.)

Tú negabas a tu mamá cuando te pedía que hicieras tus tareas. (You were denying your mom when she asked you to do your homework.)

Él negaba rotundamente haber plagiado el trabajo. (He was flatly denying having plagiarized the work.)

Ustedes negaban la solicitud de aumento de sueldo a los empleados. (You were denying the employees’ request for a raise.)

Yo negaba con un gesto cuando me ofrecían algo que no quería. (I was gesturing no when they offered me something I didn’t want.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Negar (to deny) in the Imperfect 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.