perseguir Imperfect Conjugation
perseguir — to chase
Perseguir is regular in the imperfect: perseguía, perseguías, perseguía...
perseguir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe a chase that was ongoing in the past, or a goal you used to pursue habitually back in the day.
Notes on perseguir in the Imperfect
There are no irregularities or stem changes for -ir verbs in the imperfect. It follows the standard pattern perfectly.
Example Sentences
De niño, yo perseguía a las mariposas en el jardín.
As a child, I used to chase butterflies in the garden.
yo
Sentíamos que alguien nos perseguía.
We felt that someone was following us.
él/ella/usted
Ellos perseguían la felicidad en las pequeñas cosas.
They were pursuing happiness in the small things.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: persiguía
Correct: perseguía
Why: Learners often try to carry over the 'e > i' stem change from the present tense, but the imperfect never has stem changes.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: persigo
Perseguir has an 'e > i' stem change in all forms except nosotros and vosotros, plus a 'go' ending in the 'yo' form.
Preterite
yo: perseguí
Perseguir has a third-person stem change (e > i) in the preterite: persiguió and persiguieron.
Future
yo: perseguiré
Perseguir is regular in the future tense: just add endings to the full infinitive.
Conditional
yo: perseguiría
The conditional of perseguir is regular: add -ía endings to the infinitive.
Present Subjunctive
yo: persiga
The present subjunctive uses the 'persig-' stem: persiga, persigas, persiga...
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: persiguiera
The imperfect subjunctive is based on the third-person preterite stem: persiguiera.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: persigue
Use 'persigue' (tú) or 'persiga' (usted) to tell someone to go after something.
Negative Imperative
yo: no persigas
Negative commands always use the present subjunctive: no persigas, no persiga.