consumir Imperfect Conjugation
consumir — to consume
The imperfect of consumir is regular: consumía, consumías, consumía, consumíamos, consumíais, consumían.
consumir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense for ongoing or habitual actions in the past related to consuming. It sets the scene or describes what used to happen regularly, like 'I used to consume...' or 'they were consuming...'.
Notes on consumir in the Imperfect
Consumir is a regular -ir verb and conjugates normally in the imperfect indicative tense.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, consumía muchas golosinas.
When I was a child, I used to consume a lot of candy.
yo
¿Qué consumías tú en esa época?
What did you used to consume in that era?
tú
Ellos consumían poca sal.
They consumed little salt (habitually).
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Mientras comíamos, consumíamos la batería del teléfono.
While we were eating, we were consuming the phone's battery.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite 'consumió' instead of the imperfect 'consumía' for past habits.
Correct: For repeated or ongoing past actions, use the imperfect: 'Ella consumía poco'.
Why: The imperfect describes background, habits, and ongoing states in the past, not single completed events.
Mistake: Confusing 'consumíamos' (we consumed/were consuming) with 'consumimos' (we consume/we consumed).
Correct: Remember the '-ía' ending for the imperfect 'nosotros' form: 'consumíamos'.
Why: The imperfect tense uses different endings (-aba, -ía) to indicate ongoing or habitual past actions.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: consumo
The present indicative of consumir is regular: consumo, consumes, consume, consumimos, consumís, consumen.
Preterite
yo: consumí
The preterite of consumir is regular: consumí, consumiste, consumió, consumimos, consumisteis, consumieron.
Future
yo: consumiré
The future of consumir is regular: consumiré, consumirás, consumirá, consumiremos, consumiréis, consumirán.
Conditional
yo: consumiría
The conditional of consumir is regular: consumiría, consumirías, consumiría, consumiríamos, consumiríais, consumirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: consuma
The present subjunctive of consumir (consuma) is used for wishes, doubts, and emotions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: consumiera
The imperfect subjunctive of consumir (consumiera/consumiese) expresses past hypotheticals or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: consume
The imperative of consumir is irregular for tú (consume), but regular for vosotros (consumid) and nosotros/ustedes (consumamos/consuman).
Negative Imperative
yo: no consumas
Negative commands for consumir use the present subjunctive: no consumas, no consuma, no consumamos, no consumáis, no consuman.