The Imperfect Tense of ver is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past, for example: Yo veía la televisión todas las noches. (I used to watch television every night.)

Ver is an irregular verb in the Imperfect Tense, meaning its conjugations do not follow the regular patterns.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Ver (to see) in the Imperfect Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

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

Seeing or watching something in progress: For example, Veía la televisión cuando llegaste. (I was watching TV when you arrived.)

Describing habitual or repeated actions in the past: For example, De niño, veía a mis abuelos todos los veranos. (As a child, I used to see my grandparents every summer.)

Expressing ongoing states or situations in the past: For example, Veía que estabas cansado, así que no te molesté. (I could see that you were tired, so I didn’t bother you.)

Describing physical or mental perceptions in the past: For example, Veía las luces de la ciudad desde la colina. (I could see the city lights from the hill.)

Expressing age in the past: For example, Cuando tenía 10 años, veía mucha televisión. (When I was 10 years old, I used to watch a lot of TV.)

Colloquial usage: ¿Veías lo que acaba de pasar? (Did you see what just happened?) can be used to express surprise or disbelief.

Examples

Examples of Ver in the Imperfect Tense

Yo veía la televisión mientras esperaba a mi amigo. (I was watching TV while waiting for my friend.)

Ellos veían una película de terror anoche. (They were watching a horror movie last night.)

Nosotros veíamos las estrellas en el cielo nocturno. (We were watching the stars in the night sky.)

Tú veías el partido de fútbol con mucha emoción. (You were watching the soccer game with great excitement.)

Ustedes veían el atardecer desde la playa. (You all were watching the sunset from the beach.)

Ella veía las noticias todas las mañanas. (She used to watch the news every morning.)

¿Veías esa serie cómica? Era muy divertida. (Were you watching that comedy series? It was really funny.)

Mis padres veían el documental sobre la vida salvaje. (My parents were watching the documentary about wildlife.)

Yo veía el mundo de una manera diferente cuando era niño. (I used to see the world in a different way when I was a child.)

Ellas veían las nubes y trataban de adivinar sus formas. (They were watching the clouds and trying to guess their shapes.)

Nosotros veíamos el amanecer desde la cima de la montaña. (We were watching the sunrise from the top of the mountain.)

Tú veías el partido de tenis con mucha atención. (You were watching the tennis match very attentively.)

Ustedes veían la obra de teatro con gran interés. (You all were watching the play with great interest.)

Él veía las noticias internacionales todas las noches. (He used to watch the international news every night.)

¿Veían ustedes ese programa de cocina? Tenía recetas deliciosas. (Were you all watching that cooking show? It had delicious recipes.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Ver (to see) in the Imperfect Tense 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.