asar Imperfect Conjugation

When to Use the Imperfect

Use the imperfect of asar to describe habitual or ongoing actions in the past ('I used to roast vegetables every week') or to set the scene ('The oven was roasting the chicken when the phone rang').

Notes on asar in the Imperfect

Asar is regular in the imperfect tense. It follows the standard pattern for -ar verbs.

Example Sentences

• Cuando era niño, yo asaba malvaviscos en el fuego.

  When I was a child, I used to roast marshmallows over the fire.

  yo

• ¿Tú asabas el pan a menudo?

  Did you often roast the bread?

  tú

• Él asaba la carne lentamente mientras preparaba la ensalada.

  He was roasting the meat slowly while he prepared the salad.

  él/ella/usted

• Nosotros asábamos castañas en otoño.

  We used to roast chestnuts in the fall.

  nosotros

• Ellos asaban el pollo cuando llegamos.

  They were roasting the chicken when we arrived.

  ellos/ellas/ustedes

Common Mistakes

• Mistake: Using the preterite 'asó' instead of the imperfect 'asaba' for ongoing or habitual past actions.

  Correct: Use 'asaba' for descriptions or routines: 'Yo asaba...' (I used to roast...).

  Why: The imperfect describes continuous or repeated actions in the past, setting the background, whereas the preterite describes a single completed event.

• Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'asábamos' (nosotros).

  Correct: The correct form is 'asábamos' with an accent on the 'a'.

  Why: The accent is required to maintain the correct pronunciation and stress.

Related Tenses