If you came here expecting a long list of irregular imperfects, here is the short answer: there is essentially one — a fi (to be) → eram. Everything else that gets called "irregular" in the imperfect is a verb whose stem you have to learn once, after which it takes the same regular endings (-am, -ai, -a, -am, -ați, -au) as any other verb. A bea → beam, a da → dădeam, a sta → stăteam: the spelling of the stem is the only surprise, and once you have it, the conjugation is mechanical. This page is the consolidated stem reference — keep it open when you hit a verb whose imperfect stem you can't quite reconstruct from the infinitive. (For the deep treatment of eram itself, see verbs/imperfect/a-fi-imperfect; for why the imperfect is so regular overall, verbs/imperfect/all-verbs-irregular-note.)
The one true irregular: a fi → eram
Only a fi has an imperfect you cannot build from its other forms. It runs on the suppletive stem er-, which has no link to the present sunt / ești / este:
| Person | a fi — imperfect |
|---|---|
| eu | eram |
| tu | erai |
| el / ea | era |
| noi | eram |
| voi | erați |
| ei / ele | erau |
Even here, the endings are the ordinary imperfect set — it is purely the stem er- that is suppletive. So in a sense, the imperfect has no ending-irregular verbs at all; it has exactly one stem-irregular verb.
Era frig și nu eram îmbrăcați destul de gros.
It was cold and we weren't dressed warmly enough.
Pe vremea când erau tineri, lumea era alta.
Back when they were young, the world was different.
The "looks irregular" list: odd stems, regular endings
Now the verbs that scare learners but shouldn't. Each one has a stem that you would not guess from its infinitive — and that is the entire difficulty. Spell the stem correctly, attach the standard endings, and you are done. Here is the consolidated table; the stem is the part before the endings.
| Verb | Stem | Imperfect (eu / el-ea / ei-ele) | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| a bea (to drink) | be- | beam / bea / beau | not "bevam"; bea = both infinitive-area and 3sg imperfect |
| a da (to give) | dăde- | dădeam / dădea / dădeau | the stem grows to dăde- — note the ă |
| a sta (to stay/stand) | stăte- | stăteam / stătea / stăteau | stem grows to stăte-, like a da |
| a scrie (to write) | scri- | scriam / scria / scriau | keep the -i-; not "scrieam" |
| a ști (to know) | ști- | știam / știa / știau | keep the -i-; not "știeam" |
| a lua (to take) | lu- | luam / lua / luau | not "lueam"; lua = 3sg imperfect |
| a vrea (to want) | vo- | voiam / voia / voiau | voiam is standard; vroiam/vream are nonstandard |
Read the table as "learn column two, apply the universal endings." None of these verbs has a special ending; they share the same -am, -ai, -a, -am, -ați, -au as a cânta or a citi.
a bea, a sta, a da, a lua — the short-infinitive verbs
The verbs with very short infinitives (a bea, a sta, a da, a lua, a vrea) are the ones that feel most slippery, because the imperfect stem is longer or differently shaped than the bare infinitive suggests. Drill them in context:
Beam o cafea pe terasă în fiecare dimineață de vară.
I used to drink a coffee on the terrace every summer morning. (a bea → beam)
Stăteam ore întregi la bibliotecă în sesiune.
We would stay for hours at the library during exam season. (a sta → stăteam)
Bunica ne dădea mereu bomboane când veneam în vizită.
Grandma always used to give us sweets when we came to visit. (a da → dădea)
Luam autobuzul de la șase ca să prind primul tren.
I used to take the six o'clock bus to catch the first train. (a lua → luam)
a scrie, a ști — keep the -i-
A scrie and a ști end the stem in -i-, and that -i- stays put before the -a- type endings, giving scriam and știam — not scrieam / știeam. The -i- glides straight into the ending without an extra theme -e-.
Îi scriam scrisori lungi în fiecare săptămână.
I used to write him long letters every week. (a scrie → scriam)
Nu știam că te muți — de ce nu mi-ai spus?
I didn't know you were moving — why didn't you tell me? (a ști → știam)
Pe atunci nu știau încă rezultatul.
At that point they didn't yet know the result.
a vrea — voiam (and why it belongs here)
A vrea (to want) sits on this list because its imperfect stem vo- (→ voiam) is nowhere near the present vreau or the infinitive a vrea. But its endings are perfectly regular, so it is not "irregular" in the sense a fi is. The one genuinely tricky thing about it is spelling, not conjugation: the standard form is voiam, while the very common spoken variants vroiam and vream are criticized as nonstandard. The full controversy is on verbs/imperfect/a-avea-a-vrea-imperfect; the reference fact here is that the imperfect stem is vo-, giving voiam, voiai, voia, voiam, voiați, voiau.
Voiam să-ți spun ceva important, dar ai plecat repede.
I wanted to tell you something important, but you left quickly.
Copiii voiau la mare, dar noi am ales muntele.
The kids wanted the seaside, but we chose the mountains.
Why "irregular imperfects" is the wrong frame
It pays to retire the word "irregular" for everything but a fi. An irregular verb, properly speaking, is one whose endings deviate from the pattern. In the imperfect, no verb's endings deviate — they are always -am, -ai, -a, -am, -ați, -au. What varies is only the stem, and a one-time stem to memorize is a vocabulary fact, not a grammar exception. Treating a bea → beam or a da → dădeam as a "new paradigm" makes the tense feel harder than it is. The honest description is: one irregular verb (a fi), plus a short list of stems to spell correctly. Once you internalize that, this whole page becomes a lookup you rarely need.
Common Mistakes
❌ Bevam un ceai când ai sunat.
Incorrect — the stem of a bea is be-, giving beam, not 'bevam'.
✅ Beam un ceai când ai sunat.
I was drinking a tea when you called.
❌ Dadeam mereu o mână de ajutor la treabă.
Incorrect — mind the ă: the imperfect of a da is dădeam, not 'dadeam'.
✅ Dădeam mereu o mână de ajutor la treabă.
I always used to lend a hand with the work.
❌ Scrieam în jurnal în fiecare seară.
Incorrect — a scrie keeps -i- before the ending: scriam, not 'scrieam'.
✅ Scriam în jurnal în fiecare seară.
I used to write in my diary every evening.
❌ Lueam prânzul la cantină pe vremea aceea.
Incorrect — the stem of a lua is lu-, giving luam, not 'lueam'.
✅ Luam prânzul la cantină pe vremea aceea.
I used to have lunch at the cafeteria back then.
❌ Pe atunci stateam la bunici toată vara.
Incorrect — the imperfect of a sta is stăteam (with ă), not 'stateam'.
✅ Pe atunci stăteam la bunici toată vara.
Back then I used to stay at my grandparents' all summer.
Key Takeaways
- The imperfect's only true irregular is a fi → eram, erai, era, eram, erați, erau (suppletive stem er-) — and even it keeps the regular endings.
- Everything else is a stem to learn once: a bea → beam, a da → dădeam, a sta → stăteam, a scrie → scriam, a ști → știam, a lua → luam, a vrea → voiam.
- The endings are always regular: -am, -ai, -a, -am, -ați, -au. If the endings match cântam, it is not ending-irregular.
- Watch the spellings: ă in dădeam / stăteam; keep the -i- in scriam / știam; voiam (not vroiam / vream) is the standard form.
- "Irregular imperfects" is really a tiny stem-spelling list, not a new paradigm.
Now practice Romanian
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Romanian→Related Topics
- Imperfect of a fi (eram)A2 — The irregular imperfect of a fi — eram, erai, era — the single most frequent imperfect form in Romanian and the engine of all past description.
- The Imperfect: OverviewA2 — An introduction to the Romanian imperfect — the past tense for ongoing, habitual, and background actions — and how it contrasts with the completed-event perfect compus.
- Imperfect: Why It Is the Most Regular TenseA2 — A reassurance page — the Romanian imperfect runs on a single ending set glued to one fixed stem, with essentially only a fi → eram irregular and no stem changes, making it the most predictable tense in the language.
- Imperfect of a avea and a vreaA2 — The imperfects aveam and voiam — used for past possession and intention — including the real-world voiam vs vroiam spelling controversy.
- Imperfect: Class IV (-i, -î) VerbsA2 — How to form the imperfect of Class IV verbs in -i and -î, where the -esc/-ăsc present infix disappears and the -ea- theme takes over.