Scene 20GrammarPremium

Era, estava, tinha

Past states in photographs

The past tense describes an earlier time. This unit uses the imperfect for states and habits.

Past states in photographs

The imperfect describes a past state or habit. : . : . : . The first and third singular can be identical, so context matters.

Use , , . Regular -ar imperfect endings are -ava, -avas, -ava, -ávamos, -avam, -avam: . These are background or repeated actions, not a sequence of completed events.

Tap a word to hear itTap a word to hear it and see its meaning
Person		Meaning
		I was
I was
		you (familiar singular) were
you (familiar singular) were
·		he/she was
he/she was
		we were
we were
		you (plural) were
you (plural) were
·		they were
they were

O João era pequeno.João was little.
Nós éramos pequenos.We were little.
Eu estava em casa.I was at home.
Vocês estavam em casa.You were at home, plural.
Eu tinha dez anos.I was ten years old.
Nós tínhamos dez anos.We were ten years old.
Sou novo aqui. Eu tinha dez anos.I am new here. I was ten years old.
Sou nova aqui. Eu tinha dez anos.I am new here. I was ten years old.
Sou novo aqui. Nós tínhamos dez anos.I am new here. We were ten years old.
Sou nova aqui. Nós tínhamos dez anos.I am new here. We were ten years old.

in past descriptions is invariant : , . Singular past is ; plural . is a future-plan chunk: I will draw him. The pronoun follows the infinitive, drops final and becomes ; the vowel carries the stress mark. This is useful here before object pronouns are practised in module 5.

Practice 1/6 · Finding words

Notice the useful pattern

Tap the form practised in this unit.

.
João was little.
.
We were little.
.
I was at home.
.
You were at home, plural.

Practice 2/6 · The right form

Choose the form 1

Choose the right word for the gap.

O João pequeno.
João was little.
Nós pequenos.
We were little.
Eu em casa.
I was at home.
Vocês em casa.
You were at home, plural.
Eu dez anos.
I was ten years old.
Nós dez anos.
We were ten years old.
Sou novo aqui. Eu dez anos.
I am new here. I was ten years old.
Sou nova aqui. Eu dez anos.
I am new here. I was ten years old.

Choose the form 2

Choose the right word for the gap.

Eu uma criança.
I was a child.
Tu uma criança.
You were (familiar singular) a child.
Ele uma criança.
He was a child.
Vocês crianças.
You were (plural) children.
Eles crianças.
They were children.
Sou novo aqui. Nós dez anos.
I am new here. We were ten years old.
Sou nova aqui. Nós dez anos.
I am new here. We were ten years old.

Practice 3/6 · Fill the gaps

Use the form 1

Fill the gaps with the words from the box.

O João pequeno.
João was little.
Nós pequenos.
We were little.
Eu em casa.
I was at home.
Vocês em casa.
You were at home, plural.
Eu dez anos.
I was ten years old.
Nós dez anos.
We were ten years old.
Sou novo aqui. Eu dez anos.
I am new here. I was ten years old.
Sou nova aqui. Eu dez anos.
I am new here. I was ten years old.

Use the form 2

Fill the gaps with the words from the box.

Eu uma criança.
I was a child.
Tu uma criança.
You were (familiar singular) a child.
Ele uma criança.
He was a child.
Vocês crianças.
You were (plural) children.
Eles crianças.
They were children.
Sou novo aqui. Nós dez anos.
I am new here. We were ten years old.
Sou nova aqui. Nós dez anos.
I am new here. We were ten years old.