📖LearnModule 10 · Lesson 1 of 30Independent User · CEFR B1 + B2 mastery, and the C1 bridgeUnit 1 · Los tres pasados, en contraste
¿Escenario o acción?
Module 10 of the free Spanish course (CEFR B1 + B2 mastery, and the C1 bridge), lesson 1 of 30: One question sorts the two main pasts. On this page: 9 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line, the conjugation table and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's QR.
The words
Spanish
English
Say it
era de noche
it was nighttime
EH-rah deh NOH-cheh
la puerta se abrió
the door opened
lah PWEHR-tah seh ah-BRYOH
el escenario
the setting
ehl eh-seh-NAH-ryoh
la acción
the action
lah ahk-SYOHN
de pronto
suddenly (all at once)
deh PROHN-toh
el accidente
the accident
ehl ahk-see-DEHN-teh
el sentimiento del momento
the feeling at the time
ehl sehn-tee-MYEHN-toh dehl moh-MEHN-toh
clasificar
to sort into groups
klah-see-fee-KAR
ellos abrieron la ventana
they opened the window
EH-yohs ah-BRYEH-rohn lah behn-TAH-nah
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
La regla · The rule
One question sorts the two main pasts, and it has never changed: is this the SCENE or is this the EVENT? Era de noche (scene, imperfecto). La puerta se abrió (event, pretérito). Ellos abrieron la ventana: abrir in the pretérito, regular to the last letter.
Y también · And also
Four things are almost always scene: weather, time, age and feelings. Four things are almost always event: arrivals, decisions, accidents, and anything with de pronto in front of it. Everything else, you ask the question.
Ojo · Watch out
Weather, time, age and feelings are almost always scene (imperfecto); arrivals, decisions, accidents and anything after de pronto are events (pretérito). clasificar means to sort.
ser, imperfecto — the table
yo era · tú eras · él/ella/usted era · nosotros éramos · ustedes eran · ellos/ellas eran
abrir, pretérito — the table
yo abrí · tú abriste · él/ella/usted abrió · nosotros abrimos · ustedes abrieron · ellos/ellas abrieron
Do it now — on paper
Say all 9 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the Spanish spelling alone — begin with era de noche.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the Spanish.
Write out ser, imperfecto and abrir, pretérito in full from memory, every person, and check each form against the table above.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The Spanish Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.