oler Imperfect Conjugation
oler — to smell (of something)
The imperfect of oler is regular: olía, olías, olía, olíamos, olíais, olían.
oler Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe background smells in the past or how something used to smell habitually.
Notes on oler in the Imperfect
Oler is regular in the imperfect. It follows the standard -er verb pattern with no stem changes or extra letters.
Example Sentences
La cocina siempre olía a café por las mañanas.
The kitchen always smelled like coffee in the mornings.
él/ella/usted
Recuerdo que las sábanas olían a limpio.
I remember the sheets smelled clean.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Nosotros olíamos la lluvia antes de que llegara.
We used to smell the rain before it arrived.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'huelía'.
Correct: The correct form is 'olía'.
Why: Learners often mistakenly apply the present tense stem change to the imperfect.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: huelo
Oler is highly irregular in the present: huelo, hueles, huele, olemos, oléis, huelen.
Preterite
yo: olí
The preterite of oler is regular: olí, oliste, olió, olimos, olisteis, olieron.
Future
yo: oleré
The future of oler is regular: oleré, olerás, olerá, oleremos, oleréis, olerán.
Conditional
yo: olería
The conditional of oler is regular: olería, olerías, olería, oleríamos, oleríais, olerían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: huela
The present subjunctive follows the present indicative's irregularities: huela, huelas, huela, olamos, oláis, huelan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: oliera
The imperfect subjunctive is regular based on the preterite stem: oliera, olieras, oliera, oliéramos, olierais, olieran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: huele
Use the imperative to tell someone to smell something: huele, huela, olamos, oled, huelan.
Negative Imperative
yo: no huelas
The negative imperative uses the present subjunctive: no huelas, no huela, no olamos, no oláis, no huelan.