doblar Imperfect Conjugation
doblar — to fold
The imperfect of 'doblar' is regular: doblaba, doblabas, doblaba, doblábamos, doblabais, doblaban.
doblar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe ongoing or habitual actions in the past, or to set the scene. For 'doblar', you might say 'He used to fold his clothes every morning' or 'The map was folded on the table.'
Notes on doblar in the Imperfect
'Doblar' is regular in the imperfect tense. All forms follow the standard -ar imperfect endings.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, doblaba mis juguetes después de jugar.
When I was a child, I used to fold my toys after playing.
yo
¿Tú doblabas las servilletas para la fiesta?
Did you used to fold the napkins for the party?
tú
Ella doblaba la ropa mientras escuchaba música.
She was folding the clothes while listening to music.
él/ella/usted
Ellos doblaban el periódico en la sala.
They used to fold the newspaper in the living room.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite 'dobló' instead of the imperfect 'doblaba' for a description or habit.
Correct: Use 'doblaba' to describe an ongoing or repeated action in the past, like 'He was folding...' or 'He used to fold...'.
Why: The imperfect sets a background scene or describes repeated actions, while the preterite focuses on a single, completed event.
Mistake: Confusing the 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted' forms.
Correct: Both 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted' use 'doblaba'.
Why: These forms are identical in the imperfect tense for regular -ar verbs.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: doblo
The present tense 'doblo' is regular and used for current actions, habits, and general truths.
Preterite
yo: doblé
The preterite of 'doblar' is regular: doblé, doblaste, dobló, doblamos, doblasteis, doblaron.
Future
yo: doblaré
The future tense 'doblaré' is regular and indicates actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: doblaría
The conditional 'doblaría' is regular and used for hypotheticals ('would') and polite requests.
Present Subjunctive
yo: doble
The present subjunctive 'doble' is used after expressions of doubt, emotion, or desire.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: doblara
The imperfect subjunctive 'doblara' or 'doblará' describes hypothetical past actions or is used in polite requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: dobla
Use 'dobla' (tú) and 'doble' (usted) for direct commands; 'doblad' (vosotros) and 'doblen' (ustedes) for plural commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no dobles
Use 'no dobles' (tú), 'no doble' (usted), 'no doblen' (ustedes), and 'no dobléis' (vosotros) for negative commands.