Used to, was -ing, it was: what the imperfect is for

When to use the imperfect

The imperfect does three jobs, and each has a tell in English:

The weather is part of the scene, so it is imperfect too:

1234

1. 1Hacía sol.
2. 2Llovía.
3. 3Nevaba.
4. 4Hacía viento.

Describing the weather in the past: it was sunny, it was raining, it was snowing, it was windy.

In a story the imperfect is the background and the preterite is what happened in it:

• Yo leía cuando sonó el teléfono. - I was reading when the phone rang.

The preterite vs imperfect page shows how the two share out a story.

Words that point to the imperfect

These time words usually come with the imperfect, because they describe habits or the background:

Hablaba or estaba hablando

Both mean "I was speaking". The plain imperfect is the default, and it also covers habits. Estar in the imperfect plus the gerund stresses an action under way at one moment:

• Yo hablaba con mi madre. - I was talking to my mother. (or: I used to talk to her)
• Yo estaba hablando por teléfono cuando llegaste. - I was on the phone when you arrived.

The present progressive page has the gerund forms.