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Conjugation Chart

“Responder” (to answer) in the Imperfect Tense

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Understanding the Imperfect Tense of “Responder”

The Imperfect Tense of responder is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example, Yo respondía a los correos electrónicos todas las mañanas. (I used to reply to emails every morning.)

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

How to Use Responder in the Imperfect Tense

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

Answering or responding: For example, Cuando era niño, siempre respondía a las preguntas de mis padres. (When I was a child, I always answered my parents’ questions.)

Replying or reacting: For example, Cada vez que mi hermano me molestaba, yo respondía con un insulto. (Whenever my brother annoyed me, I responded with an insult.)

Corresponding or matching: For example, El color de la pared no respondía a mis expectativas. (The color of the wall did not match my expectations.)

Being accountable or responsible: For example, En aquel trabajo, yo respondía por el equipo entero. (In that job, I was responsible for the entire team.)

Colloquial usage: ¿Qué respondías cuando te preguntaban por tu novia? (What did you say when they asked you about your girlfriend?)

Real Life Examples of Responder in the Imperfect Tense

Yo respondía a todas las preguntas en clase. (I used to answer all the questions in class.)

Ellos respondían con amabilidad a los clientes. (They would respond politely to customers.)

Tú respondías rápidamente a los mensajes. (You would respond quickly to messages.)

Nosotros respondíamos con honestidad a las preguntas difíciles. (We would answer the difficult questions honestly.)

Ustedes respondían con entusiasmo a las propuestas. (You all would respond enthusiastically to the proposals.)

Vosotros respondíais con valentía a los desafíos. (You all would respond bravely to the challenges.)

Ella respondía con paciencia a las quejas. (She would respond patiently to the complaints.)

Él respondía con diplomacia a las críticas. (He would respond diplomatically to the criticism.)

¿Respondías a los correos electrónicos de trabajo durante las vacaciones? (Would you respond to work emails during vacations?)

En la reunión, respondíamos con claridad a las preguntas. (In the meeting, we would respond clearly to the questions.)

Mis padres respondían con cariño a mis preguntas curiosas. (My parents would respond lovingly to my curious questions.)

Los políticos respondían con evasivas a las preguntas incómodas. (The politicians would respond evasively to the uncomfortable questions.)

¿Respondías con sinceridad cuando te preguntaban tu opinión? (Would you respond sincerely when asked your opinion?)

Los expertos respondían con conocimiento a las preguntas técnicas. (The experts would respond knowledgeably to the technical questions.)

Mis amigos respondían con bromas a mis comentarios sarcásticos. (My friends would respond with jokes to my sarcastic comments.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Responder (to answer) in the Imperfect 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.