interrumpir Imperfect Conjugation
interrumpir — to interrupt
The imperfect tense of interrumpir (interrumpía, interrumpías, interrumpía, etc.) describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
interrumpir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense to describe actions that were happening repeatedly or continuously in the past, or to set the scene. For example, 'He used to interrupt' or 'She was interrupting'.
Notes on interrumpir in the Imperfect
Interrumpir is regular in the imperfect tense. All forms are derived from the infinitive stem 'interrump-' plus the standard imperfect endings (-ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían).
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, interrumpía a mi abuela mientras contaba historias.
When I was a child, I used to interrupt my grandmother while she told stories.
yo
Tú interrumpías la clase porque te aburrías.
You were interrupting the class because you were bored.
tú
El sonido interrumpía la concentración del equipo.
The sound was interrupting the team's concentration.
él/ella/usted
Ellos interrumpían la música cada vez que llegaban.
They used to interrupt the music every time they arrived.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Vosotros interrumpíais las conversaciones sin daros cuenta.
You all (Spain, informal) used to interrupt conversations without realizing it.
vosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite instead of the imperfect for ongoing past actions.
Correct: For habitual or ongoing past actions, use the imperfect: 'Yo interrumpía'.
Why: The imperfect describes actions without a clear beginning or end in the past, unlike the preterite which marks completed actions.
Mistake: Confusing the nosotros form ending.
Correct: The imperfect nosotros ending for -ir verbs is '-íamos': 'interrumpíamos'.
Why: This ending is shared with -er verbs, but it's important to remember the 'i' vowel.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: interrumpo
The present indicative of interrumpir (interrumpo, interrumpes, interrumpe, etc.) describes habits, current actions, or general truths.
Preterite
yo: interrumpí
The preterite tense of interrumpir (interrumpí, interrumpiste, interrumpió, etc.) describes completed actions in the past.
Future
yo: interrumpiré
The future tense of interrumpir (interrumpiré, interrumpirás, interrumpirá, etc.) expresses actions that will happen or probability.
Conditional
yo: interrumpiría
The conditional tense of interrumpir (interrumpiría, interrumpirías, interrumpiría, etc.) expresses hypotheticals ('would interrupt') or polite requests.
Present Subjunctive
yo: interrumpa
The present subjunctive of interrumpir (interrumpa, interrumpas, interrumpamos, interrumpan, interrumpáis) follows expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: interrumpiera
The imperfect subjunctive of interrumpir (interrumpiera/interrumpiese) is used for past hypotheticals, wishes, or polite requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: interrumpe
Use the imperative of interrumpir for direct commands: ¡interrumpe!, ¡interrumpa!, ¡interrumpamos!, ¡interrumpan!, ¡interrumpid!
Negative Imperative
yo: no interrumpas
Form negative commands for interrumpir using 'no' + present subjunctive: ¡no interrumpas!, ¡no interrumpa!, ¡no interrumpamos!, ¡no interrumpan!, ¡no interrumpáis!