estrellar Imperfect Conjugation
estrellar — to smash
The imperfect of estrellar is regular: estrellaba, estrellabas, estrellaba, estrellábamos, estrellabais, estrellaban.
estrellar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect for ongoing actions in the past, habitual actions, or descriptions. For example, 'He used to smash his toys' or 'The car was crashing when I saw it'.
Notes on estrellar in the Imperfect
Estrellar is regular in the imperfect tense. All forms are derived from the infinitive stem plus the standard imperfect endings.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, yo estrellaba mi maqueta de avión.
When I was a child, I used to smash my model airplane.
yo
El coche se estrellaba una y otra vez contra la pared.
The car was smashing against the wall again and again.
él/ella/usted
¿Tú estrellabas cosas cuando te enfadabas?
Did you used to smash things when you got angry?
tú
Ellos estrellaban sus barcos de juguete en la bañera.
They used to smash their toy boats in the bathtub.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite for a habitual past action, like 'Cuando era niño, yo estrellé mi maqueta'.
Correct: For repeated or habitual actions in the past, use the imperfect: 'Cuando era niño, yo estrellaba mi maqueta'.
Why: The imperfect describes continuous or repeated actions, setting the scene or describing habits, whereas the preterite describes completed actions.
Mistake: Confusing the imperfect 'estrellábamos' with the present/preterite 'estrellamos'.
Correct: The imperfect form for 'nosotros' is 'estrellábamos' with a 'b'.
Why: The presence of the 'b' is the key differentiator for the imperfect tense in regular -ar verbs.
Master Spanish verbs in context
Memorizing tables only gets you so far. Read 200+ illustrated and narrated Spanish stories to see verbs like 'estrellar' used naturally — in the tenses you're learning.
Related Tenses
Present
yo: estrelló
The present indicative of estrellar is regular: estrello, estrellas, estrella, estrellamos, estrelláis, estrellan.
Preterite
yo: estrellé
The preterite of estrellar is regular: estrellé, estrellaste, estrelló, estrellamos, estrellasteis, estrellaron.
Future
yo: estrellaré
The future of estrellar is regular: estrellaré, estrellarás, estrellará, estrellaremos, estrellaréis, estrellarán.
Conditional
yo: estrellaría
The conditional of estrellar is regular: estrellaría, estrellarías, estrellaría, estrellaríamos, estrellaríais, estrellarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: estrellé
The present subjunctive of estrellar is regular: estrelle, estrelles,estrellemos, estrellen, estrelléis.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: estrellara
The imperfect subjunctive of estrellar has two forms, e.g., estrellara/estrellase, estrellaras/estrellases, etc.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: estrella
The imperative of estrellar is regular: estrella, no estrelles, estrelle, estrellemos, estrellad, no estrelléis, estrellen.
Negative Imperative
yo: no estrelles
The negative imperative of estrellar uses the present subjunctive: no estrelle, no estrelles, no estrellemos, no estrellen, no estrelléis.