cantar Imperfect Subjunctive Conjugation
cantar — to sing
The imperfect subjunctive of cantar is based on the 'ellos' preterite: cantara, cantaras, cantara, cantáramos, cantarais, cantaran.
cantar Imperfect Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Imperfect Subjunctive
Use this for hypothetical 'if' situations regarding singing (e.g., 'If I sang better...') or when a past wish/request is made about singing.
Notes on cantar in the Imperfect Subjunctive
Cantar is regular here. The stem comes from 'cantaron' (preterite), dropping the '-ron' and adding the subjunctive endings.
Example Sentences
Si yo cantara bien, sería famoso.
If I sang well, I would be famous.
yo
Ella me pidió que yo cantara una canción.
She asked me to sing a song.
yo
Si nosotros cantáramos juntos, sonaríamos mejor.
If we sang together, we would sound better.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'cantáramos'.
Correct: cantáramos
Why: The nosotros form of the imperfect subjunctive always requires an accent on the vowel before the suffix.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: canto
Cantar is regular in the present: canto, cantas, canta, cantamos, cantáis, cantan.
Preterite
yo: canté
The preterite of cantar is regular: canté, cantaste, cantó, cantamos, cantasteis, cantaron.
Imperfect
yo: cantaba
The imperfect of cantar follows the regular -aba pattern: cantaba, cantabas, cantaba, cantábamos, cantabais, cantaban.
Future
yo: cantaré
The future of cantar uses the infinitive as the stem: cantaré, cantarás, cantará, cantaremos, cantaréis, cantarán.
Conditional
yo: cantaría
The conditional of cantar is regular: cantaría, cantarías, cantaría, cantaríamos, cantaríais, cantarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: cante
The present subjunctive of cantar uses -e endings: cante, cantes, cante, cantemos, cantéis, canten.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: canta
The imperative of cantar gives commands: canta (tú), cantad (vosotros), cante (usted).
Negative Imperative
yo: no cantes
The negative imperative of cantar uses the present subjunctive: no cantes, no cante, no cantemos, no cantéis, no canten.