Confused About tener
what is the difference between using tuve and tenia
3 Answers
Read this link. It should help, not only with tener, but with all verbs.
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The word tuve is the pretérito form of the verb tener in the first person singular usually translated as I had (other translations are possible)
The word tenía is the imperfecto form of the same verb in the first and third person singular usually translated as I, he, she, it had, was having, used to have.
You may learn or review the uses of these 2 tenses on this site. Type in the word tener in the Conjugation portion of the Menu (upper left hand corner) and you can see all the forms of the verb. Notice under Indicative: Preterit and Imperfect.
You may learn more about the differences between these 2 tenses by clicking on this link:
Welcome to the forum.Can you add your language level? I am assuming your level of English is good as your question is in English. I remember a lesson in class using different expressions using tener the obvious ones are age/hunger and thirst but there are lots more. However, your question is more about the difference between imperfect [tenia] and preterite [tuve] though tenia is 3rd and 1st person and tuve is first person. That is a lengthy subject.
Generally they are both past tense but the preterite is usually actions which we know finished in the past whereas tenia is more descriptive..
Look on this site under grammar. If that doesn't help ask again about specific problems
