distribuir Imperfect Conjugation
distribuir — to distribute
The imperfect of distribuir is completely regular: distribuía, distribuías, distribuía...
distribuir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use this to describe how goods used to be distributed in the past or to set the scene for a logistical process that was ongoing.
Notes on distribuir in the Imperfect
Distribuir is regular in the imperfect. All forms have an accent on the 'í'.
Example Sentences
Antes, la fábrica distribuía leche a domicilio.
Before, the factory used to distribute milk to homes.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros distribuíamos la comida mientras ellos cocinaban.
We were distributing the food while they were cooking.
nosotros
Ustedes distribuían los libros cada semestre.
You all used to distribute the books every semester.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: distribuia
Correct: distribuía
Why: All -ir verbs in the imperfect require an accent on the first 'i' of the ending.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: distribuyo
The present tense of distribuir adds a 'y' before the ending (distribuyo, distribuyes, distribuye, distribuyen), except for nosotros and vosotros.
Preterite
yo: distribuí
In the preterite, distribuir changes 'i' to 'y' in the third-person forms (distribuyó, distribuyeron).
Future
yo: distribuiré
The future tense is regular: add the endings to the infinitive (distribuiré, distribuirás...).
Conditional
yo: distribuiría
The conditional is regular: add -ía, -ías, -ía to the infinitive (distribuiría).
Present Subjunctive
yo: distribuya
The present subjunctive follows the 'yo' form change, using 'y' throughout (distribuya, distribuyas...).
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: distribuyera
The imperfect subjunctive is based on the 'ellos' preterite form: distribuyera, distribuyeras...
Affirmative Imperative
yo: distribuye
Use 'distribuye' for 'tú' and 'distribuya' for formal 'usted' commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no distribuyas
Negative commands use 'no' + present subjunctive (no distribuyas, no distribuya).