I tried and failed miserably. I have no idea whether to use preterite or imperfect but I can send you what I attempted.
1. Eran las tres cuando ella levanto para empezar el dia.
2. Mientras Philip fried (I don't know the word for fried) las papas en aceite, Elena paso la aspiradora en la sala.
3. Antes de salir, yo apage the lights(not sure how to say light)y cerre la puerta.
4. El camarero llevaba unos platos a la mesa cuando el se cayo y se rompio el brazo.
5. Mis amigos y yo nadabamos en la piscina cuando usted toco el timbre.
6. Cuando tenia quince anos, vivi con una familia en Granada.
7. Cuando tenia dos anos, empece a caminar.
8. Lave ropa sucia y la puse en el armario.
9. Mis padres tomaron las pillows (don't know how to say this) de la cama para limpiarlas y later, they returned them. (i have absolutely no idea how to say this part.)
10. Mientras que estudiaba, la alarma.
11. En el vestibulo, habia mas estudiantes.
Here are the original sentences:
1. It was three o'clock when she got up to start the day.
2. While Philip fried the potatoes in oil, Elena vaccumed the living room.
3. Before leaving, I turned off the lights and closed the door.
4. The waiter was carrying some dishes to the table when he fell and broke his arm.
5. My friends and I were swimming in the pool when you rang the doorbell.
6. When I was fifteen years old, I lived with a family in Granada.
7. When I was two years old, I began to walk.
8. I washed all of the dirty clothing and put it in the closet.
9. My parents took the pillows off the bed to clean them and later, they returned them.
10. While I was studying, the bell rang.
11. In the hallway, there were more students.
Multiple Post! Look at the preceding one, which I corrected.
Sra
you did a good job on most of those!
It looks like you're struggling with distinguishing between the preterite and imperfect tense in Spanish. Don't worry, I'll explain when to use each tense and help you correct your sentences.
1. Eran las tres cuando ella levanto para empezar el dia.
Correction: Eran las tres cuando ella se levantó para empezar el día.
Explanation: In this sentence, you correctly used the imperfect tense for "eran" to describe the time. However, you should use the preterite tense "levantó" to indicate a specific action that happened at a specific moment in the past.
2. Mientras Philip fried las papas en aceite, Elena paso la aspiradora en la sala.
Correction: Mientras Philip freía las papas en aceite, Elena pasaba la aspiradora en la sala.
Explanation: Here, you used the incorrect verb form "fried." The correct form is "freía" in the imperfect tense to indicate an ongoing action in the past. The same applies to "pasaba" to show that Elena was vacuuming continuously.
3. Antes de salir, yo apage the lights y cerre la puerta.
Correction: Antes de salir, yo apagué las luces y cerré la puerta.
Explanation: "Apagé" is the preterite tense of "apagar," meaning "to turn off." "Luces" means "lights" in Spanish. You used the correct verb form "cerré" for "I closed" in the preterite tense.
4. El camarero llevaba unos platos a la mesa cuando el se cayo y se rompio el brazo.
Correction: El camarero llevaba unos platos a la mesa cuando se cayó y se rompió el brazo.
Explanation: You correctly used the imperfect tense "llevaba" to indicate an ongoing action of the waiter carrying plates. However, you should use the preterite tense "se cayó" and "se rompió" to show the specific moment when he fell and broke his arm.
5. Mis amigos y yo nadabamos en la piscina cuando usted toco el timbre.
Correction: Mis amigos y yo nadábamos en la piscina cuando usted tocó el timbre.
Explanation: You used the imperfect tense "nadábamos" correctly to describe an ongoing action of swimming. However, the preterite tense "tocó" should be used to indicate the specific moment when "usted" (you) rang the doorbell.
6. Cuando tenia quince anos, vivi con una familia en Granada.
Correction: Cuando tenía quince años, vivía con una familia en Granada.
Explanation: You correctly used the imperfect tense "tenía" to describe your age. However, "vivía" should be used to indicate an ongoing action of living with a family in Granada.
7. Cuando tenia dos anos, empece a caminar.
Correction: Cuando tenía dos años, empecé a caminar.
Explanation: "Tenía" is the correct form in the imperfect tense to describe your age. "Empecé" is the preterite tense form of "empezar," meaning "to start," which indicates a specific moment when you began to walk.
8. Lave ropa sucia y la puse en el armario.
Correction: Lavé la ropa sucia y la puse en el armario.
Explanation: The verb "lave" is in the preterite tense, indicating an action that was completed at a specific moment in the past. You used the correct form for "la puse" in the preterite tense as well.
9. Mis padres tomaron las pillows de la cama para limpiarlas y later, they returned them.
Correction: Mis padres tomaron las almohadas de la cama para limpiarlas y luego las devolvieron.
Explanation: "Tomaron" is the correct form in the preterite tense for "they took." "Almohadas" is the word for "pillows" in Spanish. "Limpialas" means "to clean them," and "las devolvieron" means "they returned them."
10. Mientras que estudiaba, la alarma.
Correction: Mientras que estudiaba, sonó la alarma.
Explanation: You correctly used the imperfect tense "estudiaba" to indicate an ongoing action of studying. However, you missed the verb "sonó" to indicate that the alarm rang at a specific moment.
11. En el vestibulo, habia mas estudiantes.
Correction: En el vestíbulo, había más estudiantes.
Explanation: "Había" is the correct form in the imperfect tense to indicate the existence of students in the past.
Remember, the imperfect tense is used for ongoing or repetitive actions in the past, while the preterite tense indicates specific actions or events that occurred at a definite point in time. Practice using both tenses to become more comfortable with their usage.