Recursio
Lesson 77. I used to live: vivía
10 words in this lesson
Tap 🔊 and repeat out loud. These words come back in the dialogue and the exercises below.
pretérito imperfecto: -aba / -ía
Pretérito imperfecto
This tense describes what used to happen in the past: habits, repeated actions, the background.
| -ar: jugar | -er / -ir: vivir | |
|---|---|---|
| yo | jugaba | vivía |
| tú | jugabas | vivías |
| él, ella, usted | jugaba | vivía |
| nosotros | jugábamos | vivíamos |
| vosotros | jugabais | vivíais |
| ellos, ustedes | jugaban | vivían |
-er and -ir verbs share the same endings: comía, vivía, tenía. Note the accents: jugábamos, and every -ía form.
The yo form is the same as the he / she form: vivía is “I lived” or “he lived.” Context usually makes it clear; you can add yo, él, ella when needed.
When
The imperfect is especially common with antes, de niño / de niña, todos los días, en verano, siempre.
- Antes vivía en Dublín. — I used to live in Dublin.
- De niña jugaba en el parque. — As a child I used to play in the park.
English often uses used to or would here, but the simple past can also be the right translation.
These expressions don’t choose the tense by themselves: here we’re describing habits and past settings. Individual events come in lessons 79 and 81.
Ya no
Ya no means “not anymore”: Ya no fumo. Don’t confuse it with todavía no (lesson 64) — “not yet.”
Words in this lesson
El colegio is a school for children. El campo is the countryside: villages, fields, nature.
Antes vivía en Dublín. — I used to live in Dublin.
De niña jugaba en el parque. — As a child I used to play in the park.
Ya no fumo. — I don't smoke anymore.
Mis abuelos vivían en el campo. — My grandparents lived in the countryside.
Tenía muchos juguetes. — I had a lot of toys.
Dialogue
Listen to each line and repeat it. Try to understand it before you look at the translation.
Javier Nora, ¿dónde vivías de niña? Nora, where did you live as a child?
Nora Vivía en Dublín, con mis padres. Mis abuelos vivían en el campo. I lived in Dublin, with my parents. My grandparents lived in the countryside.
Javier ¿Y qué hacías allí? And what did you do there?
Nora En verano jugaba con mis abuelos. También paseaba en bicicleta. In summer I played with my grandparents. I also went for bike rides.
Javier Yo de niño jugaba al fútbol todos los días. As a child I played football every day.
Nora ¿Y ahora? And now?
Javier Ya no juego. Ahora lo veo en la tele. I don't play anymore. Now I watch it on TV.
Nora Y yo antes estudiaba poco. ¡Ahora estudio mucho! And I used to study very little. Now I study a lot!
Check yourself
Listen. What did you hear?
1. How do you say “I used to live in Dublin”?
2. A woman talks about her childhood. How does she say “As a child I used to play in the park”?
3. You used to smoke but stopped. How do you say “I don't smoke anymore”?
4. How do you say “My grandparents lived in the countryside”?
Match each word with its translation
Build the sentence: “I used to live in Dublin”
Build the sentence: “I don't smoke anymore”
What you can do now
- Say what things used to be like: Antes vivía en Dublín.
- Talk about your childhood: De niña jugaba en el parque.
- Say not anymore: Ya no fumo.
- Describe the past: Mis abuelos vivían en el campo.
Key phrases of the lesson:
Antes vivía en Dublín.
De niña jugaba en el parque.
Ya no fumo.
Day 77 of 100. Next up: the following lesson.
Lesson 78. What I was like: era, iba, veía →The course is the first step. Next comes the Recursio app: short daily practice with spaced review.