Simple past tense in Spanish. Tenses in Spanish (indicative)

The tenses of verbs in Spanish, as in Russian, depend on how the moment of speech relates to the action.

Past tense in Spanish

The past tense in Spanish seems more complex than in Russian. Let's start with the fact that there are as many as five past tenses of Spanish verbs in the indicative mood (unlike the present tense in the Spanish language.

Past imperfect tense in Spanish. Pretérito imperfecto / copretérito

It is used when we are talking about an unfinished action (often it is repeated in the past). For example: I bought newspapers every day.

Table of Spanish verbs Pretérito imperfecto / copretérito.

Past perfect tense in Spanish. Pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito

Used when talking about an action completed in the past. The table of Spanish verbs in Pretérito indefinido is usually straightforward. The conjugation of Spanish verbs in this tense is used very often, so it is worth remembering the rule carefully.

Table of Spanish verbs Pretérito perfecto simple / pretérito.

The past is only perfect tense in Spanish. Pretérito perfecto compuesto / antepresente

Spanish verbs are conjugated in this tense using the haber form and the participle of the conjugated verb (which conveys the meaning). This tense is used when the action has already completed, but is connected with the present moment. In this situation, the adverbs just, now, today are often used together with the Spanish verb.

I just finished my homework - check it.

Table of Spanish verbs Pretérito perfecto compuesto / antepresente.

Long past tense in Spanish. Pret?rito pluscuamperfecto / antecopretérito

Spanish verbs are conjugated in this tense using the preterito imperfecto de indicativo verb haber and the participle of the semantic verb (main).

This tense is needed to indicate an action that preceded another action in the past. Typically this form of Spanish verbs occurs in a subordinate clause.

I found out from him what year he graduated from school.

Table of Spanish verbs Pretérito pluscuamperfecto / antecopretérito.

Pre-past tense of Spanish verbs – Pretérito anterior / antepretérito

This tense of Spanish verbs is now rarely used. The form of Spanish verbs Pret?rito anterior is needed to convey an action that occurred immediately before another action in the past. Preterito indefinido de indicativo of the verb haber + participle of the conjugated verb.

As soon as he left, I fell asleep.

You may find this form of Spanish verbs in books, but hardly in the speech of Spaniards.

Table of Spanish verbs Pretérito anterior / antepretérito.

Spanish verb conjugation

Conjugating Spanish verbs is one of the most difficult topics to learn. If you skip it and don't master it properly, you'll have a hard time understanding the endings of Spanish verbs.

If something is difficult to remember, print out tables of Spanish verbs and carry them with you, repeating them in your free time.

It is necessary to learn the correct Spanish verbs, but you should not limit yourself to them.

Spanish verb tenses

Verb tenses in Spanish have a rich structure, but this helps those who understand them to express their thoughts clearly and logically. In fact, in the Russian language the forms of verbs are no less diverse, we’re just used to them and don’t think about them: ran, ran, ran, ran, ran, running... Simple, right? I would like to believe that after a while, verbs in Spanish will be conjugated in your texts just as easily!

Verbs in Spanish can be used in the following tenses:

1. Past imperfect – Pretérito imperfecto
2. Past perfect – Pretérito indefinido
3. Past just perfect – Pretérito perfecto
4. Long past – Pretérito pluscuamperfecto
5. Anterior – Preterito anterior

The forms of Spanish verbs in these situations will be different, so below are tables of Spanish verbs - otherwise it is easy to get confused.

Conjugating past tense verbs in Spanish

Conjugating Spanish verbs is challenging for almost all students, but the worksheets will help you get started.

Why do you need a table of Spanish verbs?

The table of Spanish verbs will help everyone who is used to systematizing their own knowledge. Using the Spanish verb conjugation chart, it is easy to complete grammar exercises on this topic, test yourself and learn how to use Spanish verbs in speech and writing.

Good luck in learning Spanish.

In Spanish there are two large groups of past tenses:

Basic(perfect) that describe events: Simple - pretérito simple ( nice) and complex, compound - pretérito compuesto ( hehecho).

Auxiliary, which describe the background state for events: imperfect - imperfecto ( hacia) and antecedent – ​​pluscuamperfecto ( había hecho)

For us, Russian speakers, when using past tenses, two groups of problems arise: 1) The relationship between the main tenses. 2) The ratio of main and auxiliary times.

Imagine practicing the most problematic Spanish constructions through an interesting story that unfolds through hundreds of questions and answers.

That's what we decided to do with Oscar. We present our first thematic mini-course dedicated to past times. It contains seven specific “lesson stories.”

I will give examples of “our problem areas” and their explanation in terms of formal grammar.

First try to translate the examples yourself. Can you correct the erroneous translation? Then, if you are interested in understanding it, you can read short explanations. This will “solve” for you all the main “difficulties” of using the past tenses.

Or you can go straight to the most interesting part (at the bottom of the article) and hear how these problems are “solved” using the “storytelling” method in our new course. In the first lesson we “work through” one of the functions of pretérito compuesto. And soon the entire course will be available.

Problem 1: Did you go to the cinema today or yesterday?

The problem of using pretérito compuesto when expressing the past. It is due to the fact that completed actions can be expressed in both the simple past (pretérito simple) and the compound (pretérito compuesto).

Correct option:

Este edificio lo han construido este año?

Si,lo construyeron hace 2 months.

Explanation: Pretérito compuesto expresses events that happened “recently” ( recien pasado).

“Recently” refers to something that happened in « open» (unfinished) period of time that continues at the time of speech: now, today, this year, this morning (ahora, hoy, este año,esta mañana) … “Open” periods still last and are part of the present.

Pretérito simple describes events that occurred in a “closed” period of time, which had already ended by the time of speech:

yesterday, last week, two years ago, one day (ayer, la semana pasada, hace dos años, una vez). “Closed” periods are part of the past.

“Recently” and “long ago” are thus grammatical categories rather than logical ones. Any specific point in time that belongs to a closed period of time requires the simple past. Even if very little time has passed:

Lo hice hace un día.

And vice versa, if the event occurred six months ago, but we choose an open period for description « este año», Without specifying dates, we use “recent past, composite”:

Lo he hecho este año.

Thus, the functions of the complex past and simple in this case are identical. If the time period is connected with the present moment, the compound complete is used; if not, the simple is used.

There is no other difference!

Once you learn this simple rule, you will no longer confuse these two types of past tense.

The problem is related to the expression of the duration of the action at the time of speech. In Russian, in order to describe an action that began in the past and continues to this day, we can use both the present and the past.

Correct option:

He's vivid aquí desde que nací.

Siempre he vividly aqui.

Explanation: In Spanish, when describing an action that began in the past and continues at the time of speaking, the complex perfect is used. It is important to learn to feel the “ongoing situation” and use pretérito compuesto. Temporary indicators that often accompany this design: siempre(Always); desde hace 10 años(for ten years now...

Problem 3: What a beautiful building they built.

The problem is related to the attitude towards the event. What do we want to say by describing it? Convey the fact itself, or the result of this event (its effect to date, the experience gained)? In Russian, we express both the action itself (as a fact) and its result in the same way.

Correct option:

¿ Has visto esta pelicula?

Sí, la he visto. La vi hace un año.

Explanation: In Spanish, when the result of an action in the present is important to us, we use the complex perfect ( when something has been done up to now):

He estudiado en la facultad de medicina.
I studied at the Faculty of Medicine.

It is important here that I have a medical education, I currently have this learning experience.

If a fact from the past is described, the simple past is used (something happened in the past).

Estudié en la facultad de medicina en el año 2000.
I studied at the Faculty of Medicine in 2000.

We are conveying a fact from the past. We describe what we did in 2000. A number of events happened then. One of them is that I studied at the institute.

Problem 4: I've been waiting for you for 10 minutes.

The problem of expressing the duration of an actual action. In Russian we express regular actions in the same way ( I read a lot), current ( I'm reading Stephen King now) and those that have already been going on for some time by now ( I've been reading for 10 minutes already).

Correct option:

Te he estado esperando ya 10 mintutos.

Explanation: As you know, to express process or actuality, in Spanish we use the construction estar + gerundio(in the process of some action):

I'm currently reading a Stephen King novel.
Estoy leyendo una novela de Stephen King.

So, if you need to show that this process has been going on for some time, you can use (haber + estado + gerundio). This construction is mandatory if we designate a specific time period.

The same idea of ​​extension can be conveyed by the design llevar + tiempo + gerundio- “to do something for some time (up to the moment of speech)”:

Llevo 10 minutos esperándote.

Problem 5: Yesterday she was at home all day.

The problem is related to the relationship between perfect tenses and imperfecto. In Russian we often express completed, perfect actions with an imperfect form: I watched this movie. Yesterday I had dinner at a restaurant. I was at home all day.

Correct option:

Ayer ella estuvo en casa todo el día.

Yyo cené en un restaurante.

Explanation: Imperfecto is an auxiliary tense that describes a situation, a background for the main events. It is never used independently to convey one-time, completed events (even ongoing ones).

If you say that “ ayer veía una peli“You describe the situation and they expect you to continue: “ What happened when you were watching the movie? For example, " yo veía una peli cuando me llamaste” (I was watching a movie when you called me).

If “watched” is the event you wanted to talk about, and not the background for another action, you need to use the perfect tense: Ayer vi una peli.

Problem 6: Yesterday I rang the doorbell for 10 minutes.

The problem of expressing the duration of an action in the past. In Russian, a continuing action in the past is conveyed using the imperfect form: I waited in line for two hours yesterday.

Correct option:

Ayer llamé (estuve llamando) a la puerta durante 30 minutos, y no me abriste.

Explanation: Imperfecto no! used to express the duration of an action. The fact that you rang the doorbell for half an hour yesterday is a simple fact:

Ayer llamaste a la puerta durante 30 minutos.

No additional structures needed!

If you definitely want to emphasize the process, the length of the action, you need to use the construction estar+ gerundio in simple perfect tense :

Ayer estuviste llamando a la puerta durante 30 minutes.

Problem 7: I had already prepared food when you arrived.

The global problem is, what is the pre-past tense used for? In Russian there is only one “layer” of the past.

Correct option:

Yo yahabía preparado la comida cuando viniste.

Greetings to all lovers of the Spanish language and those just starting to study it!

Perhaps one of the reasons you started learning Spanish (besides your love for the language, of course) is because you've heard about how "easy" it is compared to other languages. So you bought your first textbook and, out of curiosity, decided to look at the end. And then what? That's right, tables of verb conjugations in about 15-20 tenses. And each has 3 conjugations, not to mention numerous deviant and irregular verbs.

In this article, I'll tell you why you shouldn't be intimidated by these tables, whether you really need to learn all these tenses, and what you should focus on first if you want to start communicating in Spanish as quickly as possible.

How many tenses are there in Spanish?

Opinions on this issue differ, but according to the most popular of the existing versions, there are 18 of them. Some times are found in various textbooks under different names, so I have indicated some of them in brackets.

Modo Indicativo (indicative):

• Presente de Indicativo;
• Pretérito Indefinido (aka Pretérito Perfecto Simple or even just Pretérito)
• Pretérito Imperfecto de Indicativo;
• Pretérito Perfecto de Indicativo (Pretérito Perfecto Compuesto);
• Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Indicativo;
• Pretérito Anterior de Indicativo;
• Futuro Simple de Indicativo (Futuro Imperfecto);
• Futuro Perfecto de Indicativo (Futuro Compuesto);

Modo Imperativo (imperative):

• Imperativo Afirmativo (Imperativo Positivo);
• Imperativo Negativo.

Modo Condicional:

• Conditional Simple (Potential Simple);
• Condicional Perfecto (Condicional Compuesto, Potencial Compuesto).

Modo Subjuntivo (subjunctive):

• Presente de Subjuntivo;
• Pretérito Imperfecto de Subjuntivo;
• Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo;
• Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo;
• Futuro Simple de Subjuntivo;
• Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo.

What tenses do we not need at all?

First of all, look at the end of the list and remember that Futuro Simple de Subjuntivo And Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo are not used in modern Spanish, either written or spoken. They remain only in various official documents: constitutions, legislative acts, etc. So, unless you are a lawyer planning to work in a Spanish-speaking country, you will never need these times. And even if you wanted to learn these tenses, it would become a serious problem, because... You won’t find them in almost any textbook anymore. In a very small number of the most fundamental textbooks they are given, but they are given literally 1-2 pages and the reference nature of this information is specially emphasized.

Another tense that is no longer used in oral speech is Pretérito Anterior de Indicativo. It represents the pre-past tense, while emphasizing that the action took place not just before another action in the past, but right immediately before it. Unlike the previous two tenses, it is still used in literature for greater emphasis, but in colloquial speech it will always be used instead of either the ordinary pre-past tense (Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Indicativo) or the simple past (Pretérito Indefinido).

These three tenses can be familiarized with at an advanced stage of learning Spanish, but you will definitely never have to use them, like most native speakers.

Thus, instead of 18, we now have 15 times left, which makes our path somewhat easier.

What times are needed, but not immediately?

Almost everyone else, i.e. 12 out of 15 remaining. Yes, they are all used in colloquial speech, but almost any thought can be expressed without them. Let's find out why by looking briefly at each of these times.

Remaining times in Modo Subjuntivo ( Presente de Subjuntivo, Pretérito Imperfecto de Subjuntivo, Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo, Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo ) immediately fade into the background: you will study them when you already have a fairly high level of language.

The task is made easier by the fact that each of these tenses has a counterpart in Modo Indicativo, the tenses of which you will already know by now, and also by the fact that all grammatical forms of Modo Subjuntivo verbs are based on forms that you will also already know. Those. you almost won’t have to learn the conjugations of verbs in these 4 tenses; you will remember them quite quickly or, even easier, understand the logic of their formation, because You will already have the necessary knowledge for this. So the main task will be to understand the situations in which the subjunctive tenses are used.

The situation with Condicional Perfecto And Futuro Perfecto de Indicativo approximately the same: you don’t have to learn conjugations, you will understand them immediately, because By now you will already know Condicional Simple and Futuro Simple. It will be much more important to analyze all cases of their use.

In any case, the 6 tenses discussed above belong to levels B1-B2, so until you reach the appropriate level of language proficiency, you shouldn’t even worry about them: this is a truly advanced level.

Imperativo Afirmativo And Imperativo Negativo We also put it off for later. The thing is that in the Spanish language there are several forms of expressing a request, wish or order, and the imperative mood is far from the most common and polite of them. And speakers are much more likely to say, “Could you please close the window?” or “Will you close the window?” than “Close the window.” In many textbooks, this mood is already found at level A1, and if you have just such a textbook, you can safely skip this lesson: at such an early stage, other topics should be your priority.

Futuro Simple de Indicativo. The situation here is the same as with Imperativo. The future tense in Spanish can be expressed in three ways: the future tense itself, the present tense, and the construction “ir + a + infinitivo” (analogous to the English construction “to be going to”).

If you don’t want to stress at all, talk about future events in the present tense, just don’t forget to add “tomorrow”, “in 3 months”, “next year”, etc., so that it is clear that we are still talking about future events.

Yes, this scheme does not work in English, but here I suggest turning to your native Russian language. We can, in the phrase “Tomorrow I’ll go to the cinema,” use a verb in the present tense instead of the future and say “Tomorrow I’ll go to the cinema.” It's the same in Spanish!

If you want to sound more natural, dilute your speech with the construction “ir + a + infinitivo”. You will know it for sure, because all that is required is to conjugate the verb “ir” (to go) in the present tense. Yes, there are some semantic differences in using one method or another, but this is also a topic for a more advanced level. In general, all three options are approximately equivalent.

Conditional Simple. A very useful time, but at the initial stage you can also do without it. After all, instead of the phrase “I would like,” you can simply say “I want.” Yes, it’s a different shade, perhaps less polite, but you can still convey the information to your interlocutor without using the Condicional Simple. And if you use words like “please” and “thank you,” you won’t lose much in terms of politeness.

Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Indicativo is the pre-past tense, which means an action that happened in the past before another action. But again, no one is stopping us from using both verbs in the simple past tense, adding words like “first” and “then” for clarity. The meaning you convey is the same.

All we have left is Pretérito Perfecto de Indicativo , which expresses a completed action in the past, associated with the present, or that occurred in an unfinished period of time. This tense is widely used in Spain, but in Latin America it is almost universally replaced by the simple past tense (Pretérito Indefinido). And if you do the same, you will be perfectly understood, including in Spain. They will simply think that you learned a different version of Spanish, or even that you yourself came from another Spanish-speaking country.

Unfortunately, in most textbooks Pretérito Perfecto is given as the first of the past tenses, but this is only due to the ease of forming its forms. The problem is that this time cannot be used instead of other times, but you can replace it with another time (Pretérito Indefinido) without any problems. So studying Pretérito Perfecto can also be postponed a little, at least until you have mastered the 3 most important tenses. You will still learn it quite quickly due to the already mentioned ease of formation of its forms.

What minimum is needed to freely express your thoughts at the initial stage of language learning?

No, there was no typo at the end of the previous paragraph. By discarding everything unnecessary and non-urgent, we get just 3 times which we need in order to express almost any thought in Spanish. What kind of times are these?

Presente de Indicativo, it's the present tense. And as we already know from this article, it can be used to describe not only present, but also future events. And having mastered the present tense conjugation of the verb “ir” (to go), you can also use the construction “ir + a + infinitivo” (as mentioned above, this is an analogue of the English construction to be going to).

Thus, having learned only one tense, we actually already know two.

Next comes Pretérito Indefinido . This tense is the most common way of expressing a completed action in the past. The same action in the past is expressed by another tense, Pretérito Perfecto, but we have already discussed above why at the initial stage you can do without it.

Pretérito Imperfecto de Indicativo. We already know how to express completed actions in the past, and this time will allow us to express unfinished ones. No other time can convey this, which is why we need it almost from the very beginning.

That's all! It turns out that in order to say something about past, present or future events, we, as in the Russian language, need to know only 3 tenses.

Forward to conquering Spanish grammar!

I hope this article helped you make sure that the system of Spanish times is not as complicated as it seems at first glance, and studying all these times should not become torture if you approach this issue wisely and study the times in the right sequence.

Therefore, feel free to start mastering this beautiful language and very soon you will be able to speak it!

In Spanish there are several types of future, present and past tenses. In this lesson you will learn all about the indicative, imperative, subjunctive and conditional moods. In the article you will find brief information about each tense: how it is constructed, marker words for a given tense and when it is used, as well as several examples under each tense.

Times of historical type: , Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto, Pretérito Anterior, Imperfecto de Subjuntivo, Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo, .

The verb in Spanish can be used in four moods: indicative, imperative, subjunctive and conditional. In general, mood is a special category of a verb that expresses its modality, namely, the relationship of the content of the statement to what is happening, or the attitude of the speaker to the interlocutor (in the case of the imperative mood).

Let's start with the indicative mood. Indicative is the most common in Spanish. It means real action which happened in the past, is happening now or will happen, and does not imply any conditions. The indicative mood includes 8 tenses, referring to the present, future and past tenses.

Presente de indicativo (simple present tense)

Used to denote a simple action occurring at the moment, as well as a repeated action in the present. Often used with time indicators such as ahora (now), en este momento (at the moment), siempre (always), etc.:

Escribo a menudo a mis parientes. – I often write to my relatives.

Siempre desayuna a las siete. – He always has breakfast at seven.

Also, the simple present tense serves to indicate a planned action in the future, while the sentence will always have a pointer to the future tense:

Llegamos pasado mañana. - We arrive the day after tomorrow.

Futuro simple/imperfecto (simple/imperfect future tense)

Denotes a simple action occurring in the future tense, as well as a repeated action in the future. Indicators of the use of this tense can be words such as mañana (tomorrow), pasado mañana (the day after tomorrow), dentro de ... días (in ... days), la semana que viene (next week), el año que viene (next year) and so on.:

Iremos a Italia a fines de octubre. - We will go to Italy at the end of October.

Often used in modal sentences to indicate probability or command:

Jorge tendrá unos treinta años. - Jorge is probably about thirty years old.

¡Hija, lavarás la vajilla! - Daughter, wash the dishes!

Futuro perfecto (perfect future tense)

Used to denote an action that will be completed before some point in the future or before the start of some other action. Words indicating this time: hasta (before), para (la próxima semana) (to (next week), etc.:

Habre hablado español para el Año Nuevo. – By the New Year I will speak Spanish.

La película habrá terminado, cuando venga. - The film will end by the time he comes.

Very often used in a modal sense to indicate probable, possible, assumed actions performed in the past:

Nos habremos visto en alguna parte. - Perhaps we met somewhere.

El tren habrá llegado a la estación. - The train has probably (already) arrived at the station.

Pretérito perfecto de indicativo (present perfect tense)

Expresses an action that happened in the past but is relevant to the present. Indicators of this time can be: esta semana (this week), este mes (this month), hoy (today), nunca (never), todavía (until now), últimamente (recently), ya (already), etc. .P.:

Hoy José ha ido a la escuela sin comer. - Today Jose went to school without eating.

Recientemente enrique ha regresado de Barcelona. – Enrique recently returned from Barcelona.

Pretérito indefinido (simple past tense)

Used to denote a simple action completed in the past, a long action indicating a time period, when listing several actions in the past. Indicators are: ayer (yesterday), anteayer (the day before yesterday), aquel día (that day), el mes pasado (last month), dos años atrás (two years ago), etc.:

Cristóbal Colón descubrió América en 1492. - Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492.

Pretérito imperfecto de indicativo (past imperfect tense)

Denotes a continuous but unfinished action, an action repeated in the past, as well as an action that occurred or occurred against the background of another action in the past. The following expressions will serve as indicators of such time: a menudo, frecuentemente (often), a veces (sometimes), todos los días (every day), por las madrugadas (las tardes) (in the mornings, (evenings)), cada vez que ( every time), siempre (always), de ordinario, de costumbre (usually), de vez en cuando (from time to time), cada año (día, mes) (every year (day, month)):

A las nueve veía la TV. - At 9 o’clock I was watching TV.

Por las madrugadas sus hijos salían de casa e iban a la escuela. “In the mornings, his children left the house and went to school.

Mientras mi hermano hacía los deberes, yo escuchaba la música. - While my brother was doing his homework, I was listening to music.

Pretérito pluscuamperfecto de indicativo (long past tense)

Indicates an action that completed before another action began in the past. In individual sentences this tense occurs very rarely; most often it is used when agreeing tenses and in subordinate clauses.

Cuando entramo s en la sala de espectáculos, la actuación había empezado. – When we entered the auditorium, the performance had already begun.

Pretérito anterior de indicativo (past antecedent tense)

Expresses an action that ended immediately before another action began in the past. Most often used in subordinate clauses and when agreeing tenses. In a sentence it is accompanied by the following expressions: apenas (as soon as), así que (so), cuando (when), después que (after), en cuanto (as soon as), en seguida que (immediately, that same moment), luego que (as soon as), no bien (barely, as soon as), tan pronto como (as soon as), etc.:

Apenas me hube acostado, sonó el telefono. - As soon as I got into bed, the phone rang.

Futuro imperfecto de Subjuntivo (Unfinished future tense)

Futuro imperfecto de Subjuntivo is used when you need to describe an unfinished situation that refers to a moment in the future tense. In oral speech, Spaniards do not use this tense, but replace it with Presente de Subjuntivo. You can find the Incomplete Future Tense in fiction, newspapers and documents.

Presente de Subjuntivo tense construction: endings in the first conjugation are added to the base of the verbs: -are-ares-are-áremos-areis-aren; in the second and third conjugation: -iere-ieres-iere-iéremos-iereis-ieren. For example: escribir (to write) - escribiere, escribieres, escribiere, escribiéremos, escribiereis, escribieren.

• Quise que comieres. - I wanted you to eat.
• Las personas que no aceptaren estas reglas serán sancionadas. — People who do not take these rules into account will be punished.
• Sea como fuere. - Whatever it is.

Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo (complete tense in the future)

Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo describes a moment in the future that must be completed before another moment in the future. This tense is not used either in colloquial speech, or in journalistic or artistic speech. Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo time must be excellent for lawyers, jurists, judges, that is, people who are closely associated with documentation and laws.

Construction of the Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo: auxiliary verb haber in Futuro Imperfecto de Subjuntivo and participle verb.

Conjugation of the verb haber in Futuro Perfecto de Subjuntivo: hubiere, hubieres, hubiere, hubiéremos, hubiereis, hubieren.

• Si ningún candidato hubiere obtenido la confianza del Congreso, el Rey disolverá ambas Cámaras. - If no candidate earns the confidence of Congress, the king will dissolve both houses. (1978 Constitution)
• Si alguien no cumpliere con su deber de ciudadano, será castigado con arreglo al daño que hubiere producido. - If a person fails to fulfill his civic duty, he will be punished according to the damage caused.

Imperative mood

Conveys motivation to action. It comes in two forms: Imperativo afirmativo and Imperativo negativo.

Imperativo afirmativo (affirmative form of the imperative mood) is used to express a command to do something:

¡Hablen ustedes español, por favor! - Please speak Spanish!

Imperativo negativo (negative form of the imperative) expresses an order not to do something:

No trabajes los domingos. - Don't work on Sundays.

Subjunctive mood

The subjunctive mood has a special position in the Spanish language. Many beginners often encounter difficulties in the process of learning it. It is used in subordinate clauses if the verb of the main clause expresses a request, order, wish, prohibition, emotions and feelings, opinion and judgment, doubt and denial.

The subjunctive mood is used in four tense forms:

Presente de subjuntivo (present subjunctive)

Indicates an action performed simultaneously or immediately after the action in the main clause (the verb of the main clause is in one of the tenses of the actual type):

Quiero que me dejen en paz. - I want to be left alone.

Pretérito imperfecto de sunjuntivo (past imperfect subjunctive)

It means an action performed in the past simultaneously or after the action in the main clause (the verb of the main clause is in one of the tenses of the historical type). In this case, the main clause is always in the past tense.

Mi abuela quiso que yo hablara español. – My grandmother wanted me to speak Spanish.

Yo tenía miedo que el salón de belleza estuviera cerrada. – I was afraid that the hairdresser was closed.

Me gustaría que hiciera buen tiempo en primavera. – I would like to have good weather in the spring.

Te ordenó que te pusieras el abrigo marrón. - I ordered you to wear a brown cloak.

La desperté a las seis para que ella no perdiera el tren. “I woke her up at six o’clock in the morning so that she wouldn’t miss the train.”

Pretérito perfecto de subjuntivo (past perfect subjunctive)

Assumes that the action (in the past or in the future) precedes the action of the predicate in the main clause, which is in one of the tenses of the actual type. That is, the verb of the main clause must be in the past tense and indicate that the action has already happened. In Construction of Pretérito Perfecto de Subjuntivo: auxiliary verb haber in Presente de Subjuntivo with semantic verb.

Es bueno que hayamos reservado los billetes. - It's good that we booked tickets.

Me alegra que hayas tenido buenas notas en el examen. – I am very glad that you got good marks in the exam.

Es posible que él haya venido. - Perhaps he came ( I arrived).

No creo que hayan preparado el reglo para la fiesta. “I don’t think they prepared a holiday gift.”

Pretérito pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo (long-past subjunctive)

Indicates an action preceding the action in the main sentence, the predicate of which is in one of the tenses of the historical type:

Ella no creía que hubieses dicho esto. - She didn't believe you said that.

Conditional mood

Meaning that an action is possible only under certain conditions, it has 2 tenses: Potencial simple and Potencial perfecto.

Potencial simple (conditional imperfective mood)

Expresses an unreal but possible action: an imperfect action desired or expected in the present or future, an action possible in the past, a polite request and a future action in the past tense:

Comería un pedazo de tarta. - I would eat a piece of cake.

¿Podría decirme donde está la biblioteca? - Can you tell me where is the library located?

Potencial perfecto (compuesto) (conditional perfect)

Indicates an unreal and impossible action: an action desired or possible in the past, an expected action that occurred before another action in the past:

Habría ido al cine ayer pero no tuve dinero. - I would have gone to the cinema yesterday, but I didn’t have money.

Fernando no pasó el examen. Habría estudiado poco. - Fernando did not pass the exam. Perhaps he didn't study enough.

If you have already taken up Spanish seriously, you probably already know that this beautiful Romance language has several past tenses, the most important and common of which are Pretérito Perfecto, Pretérito Indefinido, Pretérito Imperfecto and Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto.

Pretérito Perfecto

Pretérito Perfecto is similar to the English Present Perfect and is used when we talk about the recent past having a result in the present. Therefore, it is used with words such as "esta semana" (this week), "este año" (this year), "este mes" (this month), "hoy" (today), "ya" (already ), todavía (more), etc. Tense is formed using the verb “haber” in the present tense and the participle.

Hoy hecho la comida.
Today I cooked food.

Esta semana no hemos tenido tiempo
We didn't have time this week.

Este año han comprado el piso.
This year they bought a house.

¿Has puesto la mesa ya?
Have you already set the table?

This tense is, in principle, simple, but it is worth paying attention to some exception participles:

Reminds us of the English Past Perfect, it is also called the “pre-past” tense. We use this tense when one event happened before another. The tense is formed using the verb “haber” in the form Imperfecto and the participle:

Me dijiste que ya habías limpiado.
You told me that you had already (earlier) cleaned up.

Me informaron de que ya me habían dado la tarjeta.
I was informed that I had already (previously) been given a card.

However, the most difficult times are Pretérito Indefinido and Pretérito Imperfecto, or rather the difference between them. There is no point in comparing it with English, although the first tense sometimes reminds us of the Past Simple, and the second - the Past Continuous, but not always!

Pretérito Indefinido

Pretérito Indefinido used when we talk about the result of an action in an already completed past, in no way connected with the present moment. In Russian, it corresponds to perfective verbs in the past tense (what did you do?). Particular attention should be paid to the verb “to be”, because in Russian it does not have a perfect form, so if we say “Estuve en París la semana pasada” (I was in Paris last week), then we use Indefinido, because We are talking about a complete period of time. If we want to express duration, as in the phrase “Cuando estaba en París, hacía buen tiempo” (When I was in Paris, the weather was good), we use Imperfecto.

Pretérito Indefinido is used with expressions related to the completed past: "ayer" (yesterday), "anteayer" (the day before yesterday), "hace dos días" (two days ago), "la semana pasada" (last week), "el año pasado" (last year), etc.

Pretérito Indefinido is formed by adding certain endings to the infinitive:

Everything seems very simple...however, Pretérito Indefinido is one of the most insidious tenses in the Spanish language, since many verbs (and, as luck would have it, the most common ones!) in this tense are exceptions.

Ayer hizo frio.
It was cold yesterday.

El año pasado estuvimos en Madrid.
Last year we were in Madrid.

Anteayer habé con ellos.
The day before yesterday I spoke with them.

Pretérito Imperfecto

The last time we will talk about today is - Pretérito Imperfecto. It is used to describe actions that occurred regularly in the past or had a certain duration in the past. The speaker's emphasis is precisely on the duration of the action, on the action in general, and not on the result. This tense in many cases corresponds to the Russian imperfective form in the past (what did you do?)

Tense is used with words and expressions that express regularity - “todos los días” (every day), “todas las mañanas” (in the morning), “regularmente” (regularly), etc.

Imperfecto is formed by adding certain endings to the stem of the verb.

There are very few exceptions - only three:

Todos los días yo desayunaba en un café.
Every day I had breakfast in a cafe.

Antes ella iba a clases de yoga.
She used to go to yoga classes.

Estábamos muy contentos.
We were very pleased.

Let's look at two examples with the problematic verb to be and think about why we use Imperfecto in one and Indefinido in the other:

¿Cómo era la fiesta?
What was the holiday like?

The speaker expects you to give a general description of the holiday: was it boring or fun, etc.

¿Cómo fue la fiesta?

The speaker wants to know how the holiday went, i.e. so that you tell him about the result of the holiday, about your attitude towards the holiday after it ends.

This concludes our description of past tenses in Spanish, but there remains “dessert” - theory and exercises dedicated to Pretérito Imperfecto, created by our teacher:

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