Spanish · B1 · Everyday language
Life in our old neighbourhood in Spanish
This guide helps parents describe past residences and neighborhood life using the Spanish Imperfect tense (Pretérito Imperfecto). This tense is essential for setting the scene, describing habits, and recalling ongoing situations in the past.
What you'll learn
- Master the conjugation of regular -ar, -er, and -ir verbs in the Imperfect tense.
- Learn vocabulary related to residential buildings and local shops.
- Practice using spatial prepositions to describe locations in a neighborhood.
Spanish phrases for life in our old neighbourhood
Vivíamos encima de una panadería pequeña.
We lived above a small bakery.
'Vivíamos' is the 1st person plural imperfect of 'vivir'.
A menudo jugaba en el patio compartido.
I often played in the shared courtyard.
'Jugaba' indicates a habitual action in the past.
Nuestro vecino trabajaba en la farmacia del barrio.
Our neighbour worked at the local chemist's.
'Barrio' is a common term for neighborhood.
Siempre me esperabas al lado de las escaleras.
You always waited for me beside the stairs.
'Esperabas' implies a recurring action.
La familia de abajo tenía un perro que ladraba todas las mañanas.
The family downstairs had a dog that barked every morning.
'Tenía' and 'ladraba' are both in the imperfect to describe the scene.
Coleccionábamos hojas de colores por esa calle.
We collected colourful leaves along that street.
'Por' is used here to mean 'along' or 'through'.
Papá aparcaba detrás del edificio.
Dad parked behind the building.
'Aparcaba' describes a regular past routine.
¿De verdad vivías allí antes de que yo naciera?
Did you really live there before I was born?
'Vivías' asks about a state in the past; 'naciera' is subjunctive because of 'antes de que'.
Hear these phrases and practise them
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Try it free for 7 daysKey words
Panadería
Bakery
Derived from 'pan' (bread).
Farmacia
Chemist's / Pharmacy
Commonly used for local drugstores.
Vecino
Neighbour
Refers to a person living nearby.
Patio
Courtyard / Playground
In apartment blocks, this is often a shared space.
The Imperfect Tense (Pretérito Imperfecto)
In Spanish, the Imperfect tense is used to describe what used to happen or how things were. Unlike the Preterite, it doesn't focus on the start or end of an action.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -AR Verbs (e.g., Trabajar) | -aba, -abas, -aba, -ábamos, -abais, -aban | Yo trabajaba (I worked/used to work) |
| -ER/-IR Verbs (e.g., Vivir) | -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían | Nosotros vivíamos (We lived/used to live) |
More examples
Antes, el edificio tenía un jardín muy grande.
Before, the building had a very big garden.
Uses 'tenía' to describe a past state.
Caminábamos juntos al colegio cada día.
We walked to school together every day.
Demonstrates a past habit using -AR imperfect endings.