subir Imperfect Conjugation
subir — to go up
The imperfect of subir describes habitual climbing or ongoing upward movement in the past: subía, subías, subía.
subir Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use this tense to describe background scenes (the elevator was going up) or habits (we used to climb the stairs every day) where the exact start or end time doesn't matter.
Notes on subir in the Imperfect
Subir is a regular -ir verb in the imperfect. It uses the standard -ía endings for all persons.
Example Sentences
Cuando era niño, subía a los árboles todos los veranos.
When I was a child, I used to climb trees every summer.
yo
Nosotros subíamos las maletas mientras ellos aparcaban.
We were taking the suitcases up while they were parking.
nosotros
Las escaleras subían hasta el ático.
The stairs went up to the attic.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the 'i'.
Correct: subía, subíamos, etc.
Why: All -ir verbs in the imperfect require a written accent on the 'i' to maintain the correct stress.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: subo
The present of subir is regular: subo, subes, sube, subimos, subís, suben.
Preterite
yo: subí
The preterite of subir marks a completed action of going up: subí, subiste, subió, subimos.
Future
yo: subiré
The future of subir predicts upward movement or uploads: subiré, subirás, subirá.
Conditional
yo: subiría
The conditional of subir expresses what would happen or polite requests: subiría, subirías, subiría.
Present Subjunctive
yo: suba
The present subjunctive of subir changes the 'i' to 'a': suba, subas, suba, subamos.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: subiera
The imperfect subjunctive of subir (subiera) is used for past doubts or 'if' scenarios.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: sube
The imperative of subir gives direct orders: sube, suba, subid, suban.
Negative Imperative
yo: no subas
The negative imperative uses 'no' plus the subjunctive: no subas, no suba, no subamos.