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expressions with tener - preterite and imperfect

Gramática
The verb tener has many uses in the preterite and imperfect:

to express age
Tenía dos años cuando vine a vivir aquí.
I was two years old when I came to live here.

to indicate possession
Tenía una casa en California.
I used to have a house in California.

to indicate obligations
Tenía que estudiar mucho.
I used to have to study a lot.

to express sensations
Tenía mucho calor.
I was very hot.

to express a desire to do something
Tenía ganas de tomar algo.
I feel like drinking something.

Gramática
The verb tener is also used
in many other expressions:

tener cuidado - to be careful
El tenía mucho cuidado.
He was very careful.

tener derecho - to have the right
Tenía el derecho de hablar.
I had the right to speak.

tener éxito - to be successful
Para tener éxito, tenía que estudiar.
To succeed, I had to study.

tener la culpa - to be guilty or at fault
No tenía la culpa. - It was not my fault.

tener prisa - to be in a hurry
Yo tenía prisa. - I was in a hurry.

tener razón - to be right
Ella tenía razón. - She was right.

tener suerte - to be lucky
El tenía suerte. - He was lucky.

tener vergüenza - to be embarrassed
El tenía vergüenza. - He was embarrassed.

Gramática
We can use tener with que to express have to
Sentences are formed using the formula below:

tener + que + infinitive = have to

Examples:
Tenía que recordar. - I had to remember.
Tenía que olvidar. - I had to forget.
Tenías que escribir. - You had to write.
Tenías que salir. - You had to leave.

Sentences with "tener"
Ella tenía éxito en la escuela. - She was successful in school.
Manuel tenía cuidado. - Manuel was careful.
El rey no tenía cuidado con el pueblo. - The king was not careful with the people.

Los niños tenían derecho a divertirse. - The children had the right to have fun.
Los políticos no tenían derecho a robar. - The politicians did not have the right to steal.
Los estudiantes tenían éxito durante su primer año. - The students had success during their first year.
Ella tenía éxito promocionando productos. - She was successful promoting products.

¿Quién tenía la culpa? - Who was guilty?
Yo no tenía la culpa. - It was not my fault.
El no tenía la culpa? - He was not guilty.
Todos teníamos la culpa. - We were all guilty.

Ella tenía prisa. - She was in a hurry.
No teníamos prisa. - We were not in a hurry.
Siempre teníamos prisa. - We were always in a hurry.
Ella no tenía prisa por vender su casa. - She was not in a hurry to sell her house.

Tenías razón, es mejor hacer las cosas bien. - You were right, it is better to do things well.
Ni Chávez ni Castro tenían razón. - Neither Chávez nor Castro was right.
¡Nosotros teníamos razón! - We were right!

Ella no tenía suerte con los hombres. - She did not have luck with men.
El tenía suerte de estar vivo. - He was lucky to be alive.

Teníamos vergüenza. - We were embarrassed.
Alicia no tenía vergüenza. - Alicia was not ashamed.
No teníamos vergüenza. - We were not ashamed.
Teníais vergüenza de vuestros políticos. - You all were ashamed of your politicians.

Sentences with "tener+que+infinitivo"
Tenía que comer ensalada. - I had to eat salad.
Tenía que tomar clases en el verano. - I had to take classes in the summer.
Ella tenía que ir a caminar. - She had to go for a walk.
Ella tenía que bailar el viernes. - She had to dance on Friday.
Teníamos que ir al cine. - We had to go to the movies.
Teníamos que comer tarde. - We had to eat late.
Ellos tenían que ayudar a su hermano. - They had to help their brother.
Ellas tenían que ayudar a madre. - They had to help their mother.
Él tenía que salir temprano. - He had to leave early.
Él tenía que llegar a las diez de la mañana. - He had to arrive at 10:00 A.M.

Notes for the Tutor

The student should review the use of the verb TENER.
The student should be introduced to expressions that use TENER.
The student should repeat these simple sentences to practice vocabulary and improve pronunciation.
Suggested Homework:The student should prepare 5 sentences or more using the material presented here.

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