educar Imperfect Conjugation
educar — to educate
The imperfect of educar is regular: educaba, educabas, educaba, educábamos, educabais, educaban.
educar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe how people used to be raised 'back in the day' or ongoing educational processes in the past.
Notes on educar in the Imperfect
Educar is fully regular in the imperfect indicative.
Example Sentences
Antes, los abuelos educaban a los nietos.
Before, grandparents used to raise the grandchildren.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
En esa época, yo educaba a jóvenes talentos.
In those days, I was educating talented youths.
yo
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'educábamos'.
Correct: educábamos
Why: All -ar verbs in the imperfect require an accent on the 'nosotros' form.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: educo
The present tense of educar is completely regular: educo, educas, educa, educamos, educáis, educan.
Preterite
yo: eduqué
The preterite of educar is regular except for the 'yo' form spelling change: eduqué, educaste, educó, educamos, educasteis, educaron.
Future
yo: educaré
The future tense of educar is regular: educaré, educarás, educará, educaremos, educaréis, educarán.
Conditional
yo: educaría
The conditional of educar is regular: educaría, educarías, educaría, educaríamos, educaríais, educarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: eduque
The present subjunctive of educar features a 'c' to 'qu' spelling change: eduque, eduques, eduque, eduquemos, eduquéis, eduquen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: educara
The imperfect subjunctive of educar is formed regularly from the preterite: educara, educaras, educara, educáramos, educarais, educaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: educa
The affirmative imperative of educar uses the spelling change 'qu' for formal commands: educa, eduque, eduquemos, educad, eduquen.
Negative Imperative
yo: no eduques
The negative imperative of educar always uses the 'qu' spelling change: no eduques, no eduque, no eduquemos, no eduquéis, no eduquen.