italiano · B1 · verb · 4 minutes
Essere in the imperfetto
Describe past states, settings, and repeated conditions with er-.
Understand the choice
The imperfetto views a past state from within, making it ideal for setting, age descriptions, character, and background to a completed event.
Core rule: Essere has the irregular imperfect stem er-: ero, eri, era, eravamo, eravate, erano.
Notice it in context
Quando ero piccolo, il quartiere era molto tranquillo.
When I was little, the neighborhood was very quiet.
Ero and era use er-; quando opens the past period rather than a bounded event.
Eravate già in ufficio quando ha telefonato.
You were already at the office when she called.
Eravate is background; ha telefonato is the completed interruption.
Le strade erano vuote la domenica.
The streets used to be empty on Sundays.
Erano describes a repeated condition.
What to remember
- Age still uses avere in the past: avevo dieci anni.
- The endings -vamo and -vate clearly mark noi and voi.
Common trap: Do not form sono in an imperfect description. Use ero/era/erano.