Imparfait usage – descriptions and habits

Use the imparfait for the past when you're not talking about a single completed event, but about what things were like or what used to happen.

1. Descriptions and background

People, places, weather, feelings, age, time:

• Il faisait beau et le ciel était bleu.The weather was nice and the sky was blue.
• Elle avait vingt ans.She was twenty.
• J'étais fatigué.I was tired.
• Il était minuit.It was midnight.
• La maison était grande et ancienne.The house was big and old.

2. Habits and repeated actions

What you used to do, or would do regularly:

• Quand j'étais petit, je jouais au foot tous les jours.When I was little, I played football every day.
• Le dimanche, nous allions chez ma grand-mère.On Sundays we used to go to my grandmother's.

Signal words: souvent, toujours, tous les jours, chaque été, d'habitude, le lundi, autrefois, quand j'étais jeune.

3. Actions in progress

What was happening (often interrupted by something else):

• Je lisais quand le téléphone a sonné.I was reading when the phone rang.
• Qu'est-ce que tu faisais hier à 8 h ?What were you doing yesterday at 8?

4. Politeness and suggestions

• Je voulais vous demander…I wanted to ask you…
• Si on allait au cinéma ?How about going to the cinema?

See Passé composé vs imparfait for choosing between the two past tenses.