agitar Imperfect Conjugation
agitar — to shake
The imperfect tense of agitar is regular: agitaba, agitabas, agitaba, agitábamos, agitabais, agitaban.
agitar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense to describe habitual or ongoing actions of shaking in the past, or to set the scene. For example, 'Cuando era niño, agitaba mi leche todos los días' (When I was a child, I shook my milk every day).
Notes on agitar in the Imperfect
Agitar is a regular -ar verb and follows the standard conjugation pattern in the imperfect tense.
Example Sentences
Yo agitaba el bote de ketchup, pero no salía nada.
I used to shake the ketchup bottle, but nothing came out.
yo
¿Tú agitabas las botellas de agua para hacer ejercicio?
Did you used to shake water bottles for exercise?
tú
Ella agitaba la coctelera mientras cantaba.
She was shaking the cocktail shaker while she sang.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros agitábamos las manos para saludar al conductor.
We were waving our hands to greet the driver.
nosotros
Los niños agitaban sus juguetes ruidosamente.
The children were shaking their toys noisily.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect for a single, completed action.
Correct: Say 'Agité la pintura' (I shook the paint - completed action), not 'Agitaba la pintura' (I was shaking/used to shake the paint).
Why: The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions, not specific, finished events.
Mistake: Confusing 'agitaba' (yo) with 'agitaba' (él/ella/usted).
Correct: The form is the same, but context tells you who is shaking. 'Yo agitaba...' or 'Él agitaba...'.
Why: Like the present tense, the yo and él/ella/usted forms are identical in the imperfect.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: agito
The present tense of agitar is regular: agito, agitas, agita, agitamos, agitáis, agitan.
Preterite
yo: agité
The preterite of agitar is regular: agité, agitaste, agitó, agitamos, agitasteis, agitaron.
Future
yo: agitaré
The future tense of agitar is regular: agitaré, agitarás, agitará, agitaremos, agitaréis, agitarán.
Conditional
yo: agitaría
The conditional tense of agitar is regular: agitaría, agitarías, agitaría, agitaríamos, agitaríais, agitarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: agite
The present subjunctive of agitar uses 'agite' (yo, usted), 'agites' (tú), 'agitemos' (nosotros), 'agitéis' (vosotros), and 'agiten' (ustedes).
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: agitara
The imperfect subjunctive of agitar uses forms like 'agitara' and 'agitaran'.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: agita
The imperative of agitar uses 'agita' (tú), 'agite' (usted), 'agitemos' (nosotros), 'agiten' (ustedes), and 'agita' (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: no agites
The negative imperative of agitar uses the present subjunctive: no agites (tú), no agite (usted), no agitemos (nosotros), no agiten (ustedes), and no agitéis (vosotros).