ahorcar Imperfect Conjugation
ahorcar — to hang
The imperfect of ahorcar is regular: ahorcaba, ahorcabas, ahorcaba, ahorcábamos, ahorcabais, ahorcaban.
ahorcar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe ongoing past actions, background settings, or habitual hangings (e.g., in history).
Notes on ahorcar in the Imperfect
Fully regular. It uses the standard -aba endings for -ar verbs.
Example Sentences
Antiguamente, ahorcaban a la gente en la plaza.
In the old days, they used to hang people in the square.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Sentía que la bufanda me ahorcaba.
I felt like the scarf was choking me.
él/ella/usted
Mientras tú ahorcabas al muñeco, yo miraba.
While you were strangling the doll, I was watching.
tú
Common Mistakes
Mistake: ahorcamos (as past)
Correct: ahorcábamos
Why: Confusing the preterite 'nosotros' with the imperfect 'nosotros'. The imperfect always has '-aba-'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: ahorco
The present tense of ahorcar is completely regular: ahorco, ahorcas, ahorca, ahorcamos, ahorcáis, ahorcan.
Preterite
yo: ahorqué
The preterite of ahorcar has a spelling change only in the 'yo' form: ahorqué, ahorcaste, ahorcó, ahorcamos, ahorcasteis, ahorcaron.
Future
yo: ahorcaré
The future tense of ahorcar is regular: ahorcaré, ahorcarás, ahorcará, ahorcaremos, ahorcaréis, ahorcarán.
Conditional
yo: ahorcaría
The conditional of ahorcar is regular: ahorcaría, ahorcarías, ahorcaría, ahorcaríamos, ahorcaríais, ahorcarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: ahorque
The present subjunctive of ahorcar features a spelling change (c to qu) in all persons: ahorque, ahorques, ahorque, ahorquemos, ahorquéis, ahorquen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: ahorcara
The imperfect subjunctive of ahorcar is regular based on the third-person plural preterite: ahorcara, ahorcaras, ahorcara, ahorcáramos, ahorcarais, ahorcaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: ahorca
The imperative of ahorcar uses the regular 'tú' form (ahorca) but switches to 'qu' for others: ahorque, ahorquemos, ahorcad, ahorquen.
Negative Imperative
yo: no ahorques
The negative imperative of ahorcar always uses the 'qu' spelling change: no ahorques, no ahorque, no ahorquemos, no ahorquéis, no ahorquen.