militar Imperfect Conjugation
militar — to serve (in the military)
The imperfect of militar (militaba, militabas, militaba, etc.) describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
militar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense to describe actions that were happening continuously in the past, habitual actions, or to set the scene. For 'militar,' you might say 'Yo militaba cuando joven' (I used to serve when I was young) or 'Ellos militaban en Europa en esa época' (They were serving in Europe at that time).
Notes on militar in the Imperfect
Militar is regular in the imperfect indicative. The conjugation follows the standard pattern for -ar verbs in the imperfect: militaba, militabas, militaba, militábamos, militabais, militaban.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, yo soñaba que militaba.
When I was a child, I dreamed I was serving.
yo
¿Tú militabas en la infantería?
Were you serving in the infantry?
tú
Ella militaba antes de la guerra.
She served before the war.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros militábamos en la misma unidad.
We were serving in the same unit.
nosotros
Ellos militaban durante muchos años.
They served for many years.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect for a single, completed past action.
Correct: Use the preterite tense ('militó') for completed past actions.
Why: The imperfect describes ongoing or habitual actions, not specific, finished events.
Mistake: Incorrect nosotros form.
Correct: The correct form is 'militábamos', with the accent on the first 'a'.
Why: Learners sometimes confuse the stress or vowel sounds with other tenses.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: milito
The present indicative of militar (milito, militas, milita, etc.) describes current or habitual actions.
Preterite
yo: milité
The preterite of militar (milité, militaste, militó, etc.) describes completed past actions.
Future
yo: militaré
The future tense of militar (militaré, militarás, militará, etc.) is regular and used for actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: militaría
The conditional of militar (militaría, militarías, militaría, etc.) expresses hypotheticals ('would') or polite requests.
Present Subjunctive
yo: milite
The present subjunctive of militar (milite, milites, militemos, militéis, militen) follows expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: militara
The imperfect subjunctive of militar (militara/militase) is used for past hypotheticals, wishes, or polite requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: milita
Imperative commands for militar: milita (tú), milite (usted), militemos (nosotros), militad (vosotros), militen (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no milites
Negative commands for militar use the present subjunctive: no milites (tú), no milite (usted), no militemos (nosotros), no militéis (vosotros), no militen (ustedes).