imitar Preterite Conjugation
imitar — to copy
Imitar is regular in the preterite: imité, imitaste, imitó, imitamos, imitasteis, imitaron.
imitar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite tense to describe a specific, completed action in the past. Think of it as hitting a point in time, like imitating a specific dance move once.
Notes on imitar in the Preterite
Imitar is a regular -ar verb and follows the standard conjugation pattern for the preterite tense.
Example Sentences
Yo imité al cantante en el karaoke.
I imitated the singer at the karaoke.
yo
¿Tú imitaste la receta?
Did you copy the recipe?
tú
Ella imitó a su abuela perfectamente.
She imitated her grandmother perfectly.
él/ella/usted
Ellos imitaron el sonido de los pájaros.
They imitated the sound of the birds.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite for a single past action.
Correct: For a specific, finished action like imitating someone once, use the preterite: 'imité'. For ongoing or habitual imitation in the past, use the imperfect: 'imitaba'.
Why: The preterite marks completed events, while the imperfect describes background or continuity.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: imito
Imitar is regular in the present: imito, imitas, imita, imitamos, imitáis, imitan.
Imperfect
yo: imitaba
The imperfect of imitar is regular: imitaba, imitabas, imitaba, imitábamos, imitabais, imitaban.
Future
yo: imitaré
The future of imitar is regular: imitaré, imitarás, imitará, imitaremos, imitaréis, imitarán.
Conditional
yo: imitaría
The conditional of imitar is regular: imitaría, imitarías, imitaría, imitaríamos, imitaríais, imitarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: imite
The present subjunctive of imitar (imite, imites, etc.) expresses wishes, doubts, or emotions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: imitara
The imperfect subjunctive of imitar (imitaran, imitara, etc.) expresses past hypotheticals or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: imita
Imita and imita forms are regular commands for 'imitar'.
Negative Imperative
yo: no imites
Negative commands use the present subjunctive: no imites, no imite, no imitemos, no imiten, no imitéis.