respirar Imperfect Conjugation
respirar — to breathe
The imperfect tense of respirar (respiraba) describes ongoing or habitual past actions and sets the scene.
respirar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect to describe background actions in the past, habitual activities, or states of being. It paints a picture of what was happening.
Notes on respirar in the Imperfect
Respirar is regular in the imperfect indicative. All endings follow the standard -ar pattern.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, respiraba aire puro todo el tiempo.
When I was a child, I used to breathe pure air all the time.
yo
¿Tú respirabas con normalidad?
Were you breathing normally?
tú
Ella respiraba muy suavemente mientras dormía.
She was breathing very softly while she slept.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros respirábamos agitados después de correr.
We were breathing heavily after running.
nosotros
Ellos respiraban con dificultad en la altitud.
They were breathing with difficulty at the altitude.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite for ongoing past actions.
Correct: For 'She was breathing softly', use 'Ella respiraba suavemente', not 'Ella respiró suavemente'.
Why: The imperfect describes continuous or habitual past actions, while the preterite describes completed ones.
Mistake: Incorrect endings for 'vosotros'.
Correct: The correct form is 'respirabais', not 'respiraban'.
Why: The vosotros form always ends in -ais for regular -ar verbs in the imperfect.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: respiro
The present tense of respirar (respiro) describes habitual actions, things happening now, and general truths.
Preterite
yo: respiré
The preterite of respirar (respiré) indicates completed past actions.
Future
yo: respiraré
The future tense of respirar (respiraré) indicates actions that will happen or expresses probability.
Conditional
yo: respiraría
The conditional of respirar (respiraría) expresses hypotheticals ('would breathe'), polite requests, or future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: respire
The present subjunctive of respirar (respire) is used for wishes, doubts, emotions, and after certain conjunctions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: respirara
The imperfect subjunctive of respirar (respirara/respirase) expresses past hypotheticals, wishes, or doubts.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: respira
Use the imperative of respirar for direct commands: respira (tú), respire (usted), respiremos (nosotros), respiren (ustedes), respirad (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: no respires
Negative commands for respirar use the present subjunctive: no respires (tú), no respire (usted), no respiremos (nosotros), no respiren (ustedes), no respiréis (vosotros).