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Conjugation Chart

“Preocupar” (to worry) in the Imperfect Tense

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Understanding the Imperfect Tense of “Preocupar”

The Imperfect Tense of preocupar is used to describe ongoing or repeated worries in the past. For example, Me preocupaba por mi salud cuando era joven. (I used to worry about my health when I was young.)

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

How to Use Preocupar in the Imperfect Tense

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

Expressing worry or concern: For example, Me preocupaba que no llegaras a tiempo. (I was worried that you wouldn’t arrive on time.) This is the most common usage, indicating a state of worry or anxiety about something in the past.

Caring about something: For example, No me preocupaba mucho mi apariencia en ese entonces. (I didn’t care much about my appearance back then.) It can convey a lack of concern or indifference towards something.

Causing worry or distress (reflexive use): For example, Los niños se preocupaban por todo. (The kids would worry about everything.) In this reflexive form, it expresses the act of worrying or getting distressed about various matters.

Idiomatic usage: ¡No te preocupes! (Don’t worry!/Chill out!) is a common phrase used to reassure someone and tell them not to worry.

Real Life Examples of Preocupar in the Imperfect Tense

Yo me preocupaba por mi hermano menor cuando salía de noche. (I used to worry about my younger brother when he went out at night.)

Ellos se preocupaban demasiado por las cosas pequeñas en la vida. (They used to worry too much about the little things in life.)

¿Te preocupabas por el futuro cuando eras joven? (Did you use to worry about the future when you were young?)

Mi mamá se preocupaba un montón cuando no llegaba a casa a tiempo. (My mom used to worry a lot when I didn’t get home on time.)

Antes, me preocupaba mucho por mi apariencia física. (Before, I used to worry a lot about my physical appearance.)

Cuando era niño, nunca me preocupaba por nada. (When I was a kid, I never used to worry about anything.)

Ella se preocupaba tanto por su trabajo que a veces se enfermaba. (She used to worry so much about her job that she sometimes got sick.)

¿Por qué te preocupabas tanto por esa relación? Ya no vale la pena. (Why did you use to worry so much about that relationship? It’s not worth it anymore.)

Nosotros nos preocupábamos por el medio ambiente mucho antes de que fuera popular. (We used to worry about the environment long before it became popular.)

Aunque me preocupaba por mi salud, nunca hice nada al respecto. (Even though I used to worry about my health, I never did anything about it.)

Ella se preocupaba un chingo por sus hijos cuando andaban en la calle. (She used to worry a lot about her kids when they were out on the streets.)

¿Por qué te preocupabas tanto por esa tontería? No era tan grave. (Why did you use to worry so much about that silly thing? It wasn’t that serious.)

Antes de tener hijos, nunca me preocupaba por nada. (Before having kids, I never used to worry about anything.)

Cuando era joven, me preocupaba demasiado por mi futuro profesional. (When I was young, I used to worry too much about my professional future.)

Ellas se preocupaban mucho por las apariencias y lo que pensaba la gente. (They used to worry a lot about appearances and what people thought.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Preocupar (to worry) 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.