desarrollar Imperfect Conjugation
desarrollar — to develop
Use the imperfect 'desarrollaba' for ongoing or habitual past actions of developing.
desarrollar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
The imperfect of 'desarrollar' describes actions that were happening repeatedly or continuously in the past, or sets the scene. Think of it as 'used to develop' or 'was developing'. For example, 'When I was young, I used to develop my drawing skills'.
Notes on desarrollar in the Imperfect
'Desarrollar' is regular in the imperfect tense. All forms follow the standard -ar imperfect pattern.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, desarrollaba mis propios juegos.
When I was a child, I used to develop my own games.
yo
Ella desarrollaba su tesis doctoral en esa época.
She was developing her doctoral thesis at that time.
él/ella/usted
Antes, la empresa desarrollaba productos más simples.
Before, the company used to develop simpler products.
él/ella/usted
Mientras tú estudiabas, ellos desarrollaban el proyecto.
While you studied, they were developing the project.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect for a single, completed past action.
Correct: For a completed action like 'He developed the plan yesterday', use the preterite: 'Él desarrolló el plan ayer'.
Why: The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual actions, not specific completed events.
Mistake: Confusing the imperfect 'desarrollábamos' (nosotros) with the preterite.
Correct: While 'desarrollamos' can be present or preterite, 'desarrollábamos' is *only* imperfect.
Why: This helps distinguish ongoing past actions from completed ones for the 'nosotros' form.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: desarrollo
Use the present tense 'desarrollo' for current actions, habits, and general truths about developing things.
Preterite
yo: desarrollé
The preterite of 'desarrollar' is regular: desarrollé, desarrollaste, desarrolló, desarrollamos, desarrollasteis, desarrollaron.
Future
yo: desarrollaré
Use the future tense 'desarrollaré' for actions that will happen or to express probability.
Conditional
yo: desarrollaría
Use the conditional 'desarrollaría' for hypotheticals ('would'), polite requests, and future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: desarrolle
Use the present subjunctive 'desarrolle' for wishes, doubts, emotions, and after certain impersonal expressions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: desarrollara
Use the imperfect subjunctive 'desarrollara'/'desarrollase' for past hypotheticals, wishes, or polite requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: desarrolla
Use 'desarrolla' (tú), 'desarrolle' (usted), 'desarrollemos' (nosotros), 'desarrollad' (vosotros), 'desarrollen' (ustedes) for direct commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no desarrolles
Use 'no desarrolles' (tú), 'no desarrolle' (usted), 'no desarrollemos' (nosotros), 'no desarrolléis' (vosotros), 'no desarrollen' (ustedes) for negative commands.