G A M E - Preterite vs Imperfect
Objective: practice in the use of the past tenses, preterite & imperfect
The rules:-----------------------------
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translate the English sentence given by the person above into Spanish using the correct preterite or imperfect verb conjugations
make sure you click on N E W E S T before you begin
Then
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state whether you used the preterite or the imperfect and give a short explanation as to why you used it
- and finally
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provide a new sentence in English which includes a verb used in the past
for the next person to translate.
Have fun! ¡Diviértanse!
A suggestion: please keep your sentences simple. This is tricky stuff, so let's concentrate on the tenses, ok? - Gekko.
PS: here's a great link showing how the preterite is for action in the past whereas the imperfect is an ongoing condition in the past: Imperfecto vs Preterito and another that I've put together that may be of some use too, Pret vs Imp.
A big thanks to Gekko who 'was' kindly correcting this thread - Gekko if you have a mo' please post a thread below introducing yourself or post empty thread for me to introduce you, thus allowing the grateful participants to vote for all your hard and much appreciated work here 
Edit - Sadly Gekko doesn't come round much anymore :( we'd love it if he did but in the meantime any corrections or suggestions are gratefully accepted and if someone would like to volunteer to help with moderation of this game, that'd be awesome, please just let us know so we can welcome you officially to the possie (as us antipodeans say (ie. position))
388 Answers
What do you mean "introduce myself"?
Do I really need introduction? Sweet little me? Really??
If you don't know what a Gekkosan is, just do a quick search. Something or other is bound to come up.
Of course Gekko needs no introduction but this post is here because I know you will all really appreciate the hard work that Gekko is doing on this thread and you will want to say thanx - so .... 'Vote here for Gekko' and all your wildest dreams may come true!
If you want to know more about this idea, read 'Reward the Moderators' 
Luz sat down on the sofa.
Luz se sentó en el sofá
Preterite because the action took place and ended in that moment.
Rogelio used to be a lawyer
Rogelio used to be a lawyer
Rogelio era un abogado
Imperfect: because the person used to be (was being) a lawyer this was happening at some time in the past and there was no clear completion of the action/state of being a lawyer
Sofia played with her skipping rope
Old sentence:
When we were young, we played all the time.
Translation: Cuando eramos jóvenes, jugabamos todo el tiempo.
Imperfect: because it was an ongoing period of time in the past.
New sentence: Where did you live when you were a child?
Old sentence: I was thinking about you.
Estaba pensando en ti.
Imperfect: Because there is no definite beginning or end to the action.
New sentence: When we were young, we played all the time.
María spent her time reading books in Tongan while sunbathing in New Zealand's beaches
María pasó su tiempo leyendo libros en Tongano mientras tomaba el sol en las playas de Nueva Zelanda.
Preterite for "passed the time" and imperfect for "took the sun" because when one action is performed while another action is going on you use preterite for the first and imperfect for the second.
Edit: OK, mientras instead of cuando.
When I was a child my mother told me I was very handsome.
Old sentence:
Last Sunday it rained a lot so I didn't go for a walk.
Translation: El domingo pasado llovió mucho, por eso no di un paseo.
Preterit: because the events took place within one day, a specific time period.
New sentence: I was thinking about you.
Old Sentence:
I fell off my horse yesterday while riding.
Ayer me caí de mi caballo mientras montaba.
[Edit: I forgot my explanation] - 'caerse' is preterite because it's a completed action. 'montar' is imperfect because it is something that was occuring as a background event.
New sentance:
Last Sunday it rained a lot so I didn't go for a walk.
Sofia played with her skipping rope
Sofía jugó con su cuerda de saltar.
Preterite because the action took place and ended in that moment.
Edited: María spent her time reading books in Tongan while sunbathing in New Zealand's beaches
She opened the door, but there was no one outside.
Abrió la puerta, pero no había nadie fuera.
Abrío preterit..its an open and shut case! I know Ha Ha.
I'll go with the imperfect tense with había. There is ambiguity here. Just because no one was there the first time the door was opened, next time, a visitor perhaps?
New Sentence..
I thought of a vacation in Costa Rica but lost too much money in Las Vegas.
I used to like flowers before I became allergic.
Las flores me gustaban hasta adquirí una alergia.
The imperfect gustaban was affected by the preterit or simple past tense adquirí.
New sentence.
I rode horseback a lot when I was young.
Given: "Last week, while I was driving to London, it was very sunny."
Spanish: (La semana pasada mientras manejaba a Londres, era muy soleado.)
(manejaba) -- imperfect: what I was doing, no definite length of time
(era) -- imperfect: decription of the past
New sentence:
Yesterday was a great day, I went to the beach for 2 hours.
Given Sentence: What were you doing when the earthquake hit?
Translation: ¿Qué estabas haciendo cuando ocurrió el terremoto?
I used the imperfect for estar haciendo to set the scene and the preterite for the interupting action (ocurrir).
New Sentence: All day long she waited for children to pass by.
Given Sentence:
I climbed a mountain two days ago.
Hace dos días subí una montaña.
Preterite because a time in the past was specified and the action was completed.
New Sentence:
Last night Luz began to feel sick and she woudn't stop crying.
When I was a child my mother told me I was very handsome.
Cuando era niño mi madre me dijo que era muy guapo.
Era (imperfect - no start or finish to the timeframe)
dijo (she told me "once" - could be "decía" but Kevin didn't say "used to tell me")
Era (as above)
Last week, while I was driving to London, it was very sunny.
