cortar Imperfect Conjugation
cortar — to cut
Cortar in the imperfect follows the regular -aba pattern: cortaba, cortabas, cortaba, cortábamos, cortabais, cortaban.
cortar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe a past habit of cutting, like how your grandfather used to cut the wood, or to describe an ongoing action that was interrupted.
Notes on cortar in the Imperfect
Cortar is regular in the imperfect. Remember to add the accent on the 'a' in the nosotros form (cortábamos).
Example Sentences
Mi abuelo cortaba leña cada invierno.
My grandfather used to cut firewood every winter.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros cortábamos la fruta cuando llegó María.
We were cutting the fruit when Maria arrived.
nosotros
Tú siempre cortabas las etiquetas de la ropa.
You always used to cut the tags off the clothes.
tú
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'cortía' instead of 'cortaba'.
Correct: cortaba
Why: Learners often mix up the -aba endings for -ar verbs with the -ía endings used for -er and -ir verbs.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: corto
Cortar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense: corto, cortas, corta, cortamos, cortáis, cortan.
Preterite
yo: corté
The preterite of cortar is regular: corté, cortaste, cortó, cortamos, cortasteis, cortaron.
Future
yo: cortaré
The future of cortar is formed by adding endings to the infinitive: cortaré, cortarás, cortará, cortaremos, cortaréis, cortarán.
Conditional
yo: cortaría
The conditional of cortar uses the infinitive plus -ía endings: cortaría, cortarías, cortaría, cortaríamos, cortaríais, cortarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: corte
The present subjunctive of cortar uses -e endings: corte, cortes, corte, cortemos, cortéis, corten.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cortara
The imperfect subjunctive of cortar is based on the 'ellos' preterite: cortara, cortaras, cortara, cortáramos, cortarais, cortaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: corta
The affirmative imperative of cortar gives direct commands: corta (tú), cortad (vosotros), corte(n) (usted/es).
Negative Imperative
yo: no cortes
The negative imperative of cortar uses 'no' plus the present subjunctive: no cortes, no corte, no cortemos, no cortéis, no corten.