The Imperfect Tense of sentarse is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example: Cuando era niño, me sentaba en el patio a leer. (When I was a child, I would sit in the yard to read.)

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

Conjugations

Conjugations of Sentarse (to sit down) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

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

Describing an ongoing action in the past: For example, Yo me sentaba en el sofá a leer un libro. (I used to sit on the couch to read a book.)

Describing a repeated or habitual action in the past: For example, Cuando era niño, me sentaba en el piso para jugar videojuegos. (When I was a child, I used to sit on the floor to play video games.)

Describing a state or condition in the past: For example, La silla se sentaba incómoda. (The chair felt uncomfortable.)

Describing a background action in the past: For example, Mientras me sentaba en la sala, escuché un ruido extraño. (While I was sitting in the living room, I heard a strange noise.)

Colloquial/Slang usage: For example, ¡Siéntate y cállate! (Sit down and shut up!)

Examples

Examples of Sentarse in the Imperfect Tense

Cuando era niño, me sentaba en el patio a leer libros por horas. (When I was a child, I would sit in the yard to read books for hours.)

Mis abuelos se sentaban en la sala a ver telenovelas todas las noches. (My grandparents would sit in the living room to watch soap operas every night.)

En la escuela, nos sentábamos en círculo para discutir los libros que leíamos. (At school, we would sit in a circle to discuss the books we read.)

Ella se sentaba en la banca del parque a escribir en su diario. (She would sit on the park bench to write in her journal.)

Cuando llegábamos tarde al cine, nos sentábamos en las últimas filas. (When we arrived late to the movies, we would sit in the back rows.)

En las reuniones familiares, me sentaba con mis primos a jugar videojuegos. (At family gatherings, I would sit with my cousins to play video games.)

Después del trabajo, se sentaba en el sofá a ver televisión y relajarse. (After work, he would sit on the couch to watch TV and relax.)

Cuando nos sentábamos en la cafetería, siempre pedíamos café y pan dulce. (When we would sit at the cafe, we always ordered coffee and sweet bread.)

En la universidad, me sentaba en la primera fila para poder escuchar mejor al profesor. (In college, I would sit in the front row to better hear the professor.)

Mis amigos y yo nos sentábamos en la acera a platicar y pasar el rato. (My friends and I would sit on the curb to chat and hang out.)

Ella se sentaba en el piso de su habitación a hacer manualidades. (She would sit on the floor of her room to do crafts.)

Cuando me sentaba en la oficina, siempre revisaba mi correo electrónico primero. (When I would sit at the office, I always checked my email first.)

En las fiestas, nos sentábamos alrededor de la mesa a comer y conversar. (At parties, we would sit around the table to eat and converse.)

Mis padres se sentaban en el patio trasero a tomar café por las mañanas. (My parents would sit in the backyard to drink coffee in the mornings.)

Cuando me sentaba en el autobús, siempre buscaba un asiento junto a la ventana. (When I would sit on the bus, I always looked for a seat by the window.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Sentarse (to sit down) 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.