presidir Imperfect Conjugation
presidir — to chair
The imperfect 'presidía' describes ongoing or habitual past actions of chairing.
presidir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense to describe actions of presiding that were ongoing, habitual, or served as background description in the past. It paints a picture of what was happening or what used to happen regularly, without focusing on a specific start or end.
Notes on presidir in the Imperfect
'Presidir' is regular in the imperfect tense. The endings follow the standard pattern for regular -ir verbs.
Example Sentences
Yo presidía el club cuando era estudiante.
I used to chair the club when I was a student.
yo
¿Tú presidías las reuniones los lunes?
Did you used to chair the meetings on Mondays?
tú
Ella presidía la junta directiva en esa época.
She was chairing the board of directors at that time.
él/ella/usted
Ellos presidían el comité desde hacía años.
They had been chairing the committee for years.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite 'presidió' for a habitual past action.
Correct: For habitual or ongoing past actions, use the imperfect: 'Ella presidía la junta.'
Why: The imperfect describes continuous or repeated actions in the past, setting the scene, while the preterite marks a single, completed event.
Mistake: Confusing the imperfect 'presidía' with the conditional 'presidiría'.
Correct: Remember 'presidía' is imperfect (past ongoing/habitual) and 'presidiría' is conditional (would chair).
Why: These forms sound similar but have distinct meanings and uses in Spanish grammar.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: presido
The present tense 'presido' (I chair) or 'presiden' (they chair) describes current or habitual actions.
Preterite
yo: presidí
The preterite of 'presidir' marks completed actions like 'presidí' (I chaired) or 'presidió' (he/she chaired).
Future
yo: presidiré
The future tense 'presidiré' (I will chair) or 'presidirá' (he/she will chair) indicates actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: presidiría
The conditional 'presidiría' (I would chair) expresses hypotheticals or polite requests.
Present Subjunctive
yo: presida
The present subjunctive like 'presida' or 'presidan' expresses wishes, doubts, or uncertainty about current or future events.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: presidiera
The imperfect subjunctive like 'presidiera' or 'presidiera' is used for past hypothetical situations or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: preside
Commands like 'preside' or 'presidan' are used to tell someone to chair something.
Negative Imperative
yo: no presidas
Negative commands like 'no presidas' or 'no presidan' tell someone not to chair something.