cobrar Imperfect Conjugation
cobrar — to charge (a price)
The imperfect tense of cobrar (cobraba, cobrabas, etc.) describes ongoing or habitual past actions, or sets the background scene.
cobrar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense for actions that were happening repeatedly or continuously in the past, or to describe the background situation. For 'cobrar', think 'He used to charge...' or 'They were charging when...'.
Notes on cobrar in the Imperfect
Cobrar is regular in the imperfect tense. It follows the standard pattern for -ar verbs, adding the imperfect endings to the infinitive stem.
Example Sentences
Yo cobraba por cada consulta.
I used to charge for each consultation.
yo
¿Tú cobrabas mucho en ese trabajo?
Did you used to charge a lot at that job?
tú
Ella cobraba una comisión del 10%.
She was charging a 10% commission.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros cobrábamos una tarifa mensual.
We used to charge a monthly fee.
nosotros
Ellos cobraban por adelantado en esa época.
They used to charge upfront back then.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect for a single, completed past action.
Correct: For a specific completed action, use the preterite: 'Ayer cobró la factura' (Yesterday he charged the invoice).
Why: The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions, not single completed events.
Mistake: Confusing the nosotros form: 'cobrabamos' vs 'cobrábamos'.
Correct: The nosotros form is 'cobrábamos' with an accent on the first 'a'.
Why: The accent indicates the stressed syllable and is crucial for correct pronunciation and spelling.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: cobro
The present tense of cobrar (cobro, cobras, cobra, etc.) describes habitual actions, current actions, or general truths.
Preterite
yo: cobré
The preterite of cobrar (cobré, cobraste, cobró, etc.) is used for completed actions in the past, like charging a specific amount at a specific time.
Future
yo: cobraré
The future tense of cobrar (cobraré, cobrarás, cobrará, etc.) indicates actions that will happen or expresses probability.
Conditional
yo: cobraría
The conditional tense of cobrar (cobraría, cobrarías, etc.) expresses 'would' actions, polite requests, or future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: cobre
The present subjunctive of cobrar (cobre, cobres, cobre, cobremos, cobréis, cobren) is used after expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cobrara
The imperfect subjunctive of cobrar (e.g., cobrara, cobrara, cobráramos) is used for past hypotheticals, wishes, or polite requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: cobra
Cobrar's imperative forms give direct commands: cobra (tú), cobre (usted), cobremos (nosotros), cobren (ustedes), cobrad (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: no cobres
Negative commands for 'cobrar' use the present subjunctive: no cobres (tú), no cobre (usted), no cobremos (nosotros), no cobren (ustedes), no cobréis (vosotros).