tolerar Imperfect Conjugation
tolerar — to tolerate
The imperfect of tolerar is regular: toleraba, tolerabas, toleraba, tolerábamos, tolerabais, toleraban.
tolerar Imperfect Forms
When to Use the Imperfect
Use the imperfect tense to describe ongoing or habitual actions of tolerating in the past. It sets the scene or describes what someone used to do or was doing.
Notes on tolerar in the Imperfect
Tolerar is regular in the imperfect tense. All forms are created by adding the imperfect endings to the infinitive stem.
Example Sentences
Cuando era joven, toleraba muchas más cosas.
When I was young, I used to tolerate many more things.
yo
¿Tú siempre tolerabas sus bromas?
Did you always tolerate his jokes?
tú
Ella toleraba el ruido porque necesitaba dormir.
She tolerated the noise because she needed to sleep.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros tolerábamos la situación porque no había alternativa.
We tolerated the situation because there was no alternative.
nosotros
Ellos toleraban el tráfico cada día.
They tolerated the traffic every day.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the preterite for a description or habit in the past.
Correct: For describing a past habit like 'tolerating traffic every day', use 'toleraban' (imperfect), not 'toleraron' (preterite).
Why: The imperfect is for ongoing, habitual, or descriptive past actions, while the preterite is for completed, single events.
Mistake: Confusing the 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted' forms.
Correct: Both 'yo toleraba' and 'él/ella/usted toleraba' are the same.
Why: This is a common feature of the imperfect tense for -ar verbs.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: tolero
The present indicative of tolerar is regular: tolero, toleras, tolera, toleramos, toleráis, toleran.
Preterite
yo: toleré
The preterite of tolerar is regular: toleré, toleraste, toleró, toleramos, tolerasteis, toleraron.
Future
yo: toleraré
The future of tolerar is regular: toleraré, tolerarás, tolerará, toleraremos, toleraréis, tolerarán.
Conditional
yo: toleraría
The conditional of tolerar is regular: toleraría, tolerarías, toleraría, toleraríamos, toleraríais, tolerarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: tolere
The present subjunctive of tolerar is regular: tolere, toleres, tolere, toleremos, toleréis, toleren.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: tolerara
The imperfect subjunctive of tolerar is regular: tolerara/tolerase, toleraras/tolerases, tolerara/tolerase, toleráramos/tolerásemos, tolerarais/toleraseis, toleraran/tolerasen.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: tolera
Use 'tolera' (tú), 'tolere' (usted), 'toleremos' (nosotros), 'tolerad' (vosotros), 'toleren' (ustedes) for direct commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no toleres
No commands use the present subjunctive: no toleres (tú), no tolere (usted), no toleremos (nosotros), no toleréis (vosotros), no toleren (ustedes).