contar Imperfect Conjugation
contar — to count
The imperfect of contar is regular: contaba, contabas, contaba, contábamos, contabais, contaban.
contar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe how you used to count things as a child or to set the scene while telling a story.
Notes on contar in the Imperfect
Contar follows the standard -ar verb pattern in the imperfect with no stem changes.
Example Sentences
Mi abuelo me contaba cuentos antes de dormir.
My grandfather used to tell me stories before bed.
él/ella/usted
En la escuela, siempre contábamos con los dedos.
In school, we always used to count with our fingers.
nosotros
Ellas contaban los días para las vacaciones.
They were counting the days until vacation.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Contabamos (without accent).
Correct: Contábamos.
Why: The 'nosotros' form of -ar verbs in the imperfect always requires an accent on the first 'a'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: cuento
Contar is a stem-changing verb (o > ue) in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: conté
The preterite of contar is regular: conté, contaste, contó, contamos, contasteis, contaron.
Future
yo: contaré
The future tense of contar is regular: contaré, contarás, contará, contaremos, contaréis, contarán.
Conditional
yo: contaría
The conditional of contar is regular: contaría, contarías, contaría, contaríamos, contaríais, contarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: cuente
The present subjunctive of contar keeps the o > ue stem change: cuente, cuentes, cuente, contemos, contéis, cuenten.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: contara
The imperfect subjunctive of contar is formed from the preterite: contara, contaras, contara, contáramos, contarais, contaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: cuenta
The imperative of contar uses the stem-changed 'cuenta' for tú and 'cuente' for usted.
Negative Imperative
yo: no cuentes
Negative commands use the present subjunctive: no cuentes, no cuente, no contemos, no contéis, no cuenten.