empeñar Imperfect Subjunctive Conjugation
empeñar — to pawn
Use 'empeñara'/'empeñase' (yo/él/ella/usted), 'empeñaras'/'empeñases' (tú), 'empeñáramos'/'empeñásemos' (nosotros), 'empeñarais'/'empeñaseis' (vosotros), 'empeñaran'/'empeñasen' (ellos/ellas/ustedes) for past hypotheticals or wishes.
empeñar Imperfect Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Imperfect Subjunctive
The imperfect subjunctive is used for hypothetical situations in the past, unlikely conditions, polite requests, or expressing wishes/doubts about past events. It often pairs with the conditional tense.
Notes on empeñar in the Imperfect Subjunctive
Empeñar is regular in the imperfect subjunctive. You can use either the '-ra' or '-se' ending; the '-ra' form is more common.
Example Sentences
Si empeñara más dinero, podríamos comprar la casa.
If I pawned more money, we could buy the house.
yo
Me pidió que no empeñase sus joyas.
He asked me not to pawn his jewelry.
él/ella/usted
Ojalá empeñáramos un buen coche.
I wish we could pawn a nice car.
nosotros
Dudaba que ellos empeñaran algo de valor.
I doubted they would pawn anything of value.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite or imperfect indicative instead of the imperfect subjunctive.
Correct: For hypothetical or uncertain past situations, use the imperfect subjunctive: 'empeñara' or 'empeñase'.
Why: The indicative mood describes facts, while the subjunctive mood describes possibilities, doubts, or desires.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the nosotros form ('empeñáramos').
Correct: The nosotros form needs the accent: 'empeñáramos' or 'empeñásemos'.
Why: The accent indicates the correct stress and distinguishes it from other forms.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: empeño
Use 'empeño', 'empeñas', 'empeña', 'empeñamos', 'empeñáis', 'empeñan' for actions happening now, habits, or general truths.
Preterite
yo: empeñé
Use 'empeñé', 'empeñaste', 'empeñó', 'empeñamos', 'empeñasteis', 'empeñaron' for completed past actions.
Imperfect
yo: empeñaba
Use 'empeñaba', 'empeñabas', 'empeñaba', 'empeñábamos', 'empeñabais', 'empeñaban' for ongoing or habitual past actions.
Future
yo: empeñaré
Use 'empeñaré', 'empeñarás', 'empeñará', 'empeñaremos', 'empeñaréis', 'empeñarán' for future actions or probability.
Conditional
yo: empeñaría
Use 'empeñaría', 'empeñarías', 'empeñaría', 'empeñaríamos', 'empeñaríais', 'empeñarían' for hypotheticals, polite requests, or future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: empeñe
Use 'empeñe' (yo/él/ella/usted), 'empeñes' (tú), 'empeñemos' (nosotros), 'empeñéis' (vosotros), 'empeñen' (ellos/ellas/ustedes) after expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: empeña
Use 'empeña' (tú), 'empeñe' (usted), 'empeñemos' (nosotros), 'empeñen' (ustedes), or 'empeñad' (vosotros) for direct commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no empeñes
Use 'no empeñes' (tú), 'no empeñe' (usted), 'no empeñemos' (nosotros), 'no empeñen' (ustedes), or 'no empeñéis' (vosotros) for negative commands.