despejar Imperfect Conjugation
despejar — to clear
The imperfect (despejaba, despejabas, etc.) describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
despejar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense for 'despejar' to describe background situations in the past, habitual actions, or ongoing actions that were happening when something else occurred. For example, 'The room was clearing out' or 'He used to clear his desk every morning'.
Notes on despejar in the Imperfect
Despejar is regular in the imperfect tense, following the standard conjugation pattern for -ar verbs.
Example Sentences
Cuando llegué, la gente ya despejaba la sala.
When I arrived, people were already clearing the room.
él/ella/usted
Mi abuela siempre despejaba la mesa después de cenar.
My grandmother always cleared the table after dinner.
yo
¿Tú despejabas el camino para los invitados?
Were you clearing the path for the guests?
tú
Ellos despejaban la duda poco a poco.
They were clearing up the doubt little by little.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect for a single, completed past action.
Correct: For a completed action, use the preterite: 'Despejé la mesa'.
Why: The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual actions, not specific endpoints. The preterite is for completed actions.
Mistake: Confusing the 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted' forms.
Correct: Remember 'despejaba' for both 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted'.
Why: In the imperfect tense, these two forms are identical.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: despejo
The present tense (despejo, despejas, etc.) describes current or habitual actions.
Preterite
yo: despejé
The preterite of despejar is regular: despejé, despejaste, despejó, despejamos, despejasteis, despejaron.
Future
yo: despejaré
The future tense (despejaré, despejarás, etc.) indicates actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: despejaría
The conditional (despejaría, despejarías, etc.) expresses hypotheticals, polite requests, or future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: despeje
The present subjunctive (despeje, despejes, etc.) follows expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: despejara
The imperfect subjunctive (despejara/despejase) is used for past hypotheticals and wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: despeja
Use despeja, despeje, despejemos, despejen, despejad for direct commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no despejes
Use no despejes, no despeje, no despejemos, no despejen, no despejéis for negative commands.