derretir Imperfect Conjugation
derretir — to melt
The imperfect of derretir is completely regular: derretía, derretías, derretía, derretíamos, derretíais, derretían.
derretir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe the process of melting in the past or how something used to melt habitually.
Notes on derretir in the Imperfect
Derretir is regular in the imperfect. There is no stem change here; keep the 'e' from the infinitive throughout.
Example Sentences
El glaciar se derretía poco a poco.
The glacier was melting little by little.
él/ella/usted
Antes, el chocolate se derretía en mis manos.
Before, the chocolate used to melt in my hands.
él/ella/usted
Las estatuas de hielo se derretían durante la fiesta.
The ice statues were melting during the party.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using a stem change like 'derritía'.
Correct: derretía
Why: Stem changes for -ir verbs do not apply in the imperfect indicative.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: derrito
The present tense of derretir is a stem-changer (e to i) for all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: derretí
In the preterite, derretir only stem-changes (e to i) in the third-person forms (él/ellos).
Future
yo: derretiré
The future tense of derretir is regular: just add the endings to the infinitive (derretiré, derretirás...).
Conditional
yo: derretiría
The conditional of derretir is regular: derretiría, derretirías, derretiría, derretiríamos, derretiríais, derretirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: derrita
The present subjunctive of derretir stem-changes (e to i) in ALL forms, including nosotros and vosotros.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: derritiera
The imperfect subjunctive uses the 'derriti-' stem for all forms (derritiera, derritieras...).
Affirmative Imperative
yo: derrite
The imperative uses 'derrite' (tú) and 'derritan' (ustedes) to give commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no derritas
The negative imperative of derretir uses the present subjunctive forms with 'no'.