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Preterite Tense
Formation
The formation of regular verbs in the preterite tense is straightforward. To the stem of the infinitive are added endings, or markers:
Infinitives, stems, and endings*Hablar — Habl-
- -é
- -aste
- -ó
- -amos
- -asteis
- -aron
Comer — Com-
- -í
- -iste
- -ió
- -imos
- -isteis
- -ieron
Vivir — Viv-
- -í
- -iste
- -ió
- -imos
- -isteis
- -ieron
* Note that the -er and -ir endings are identical. Note also that the 1st person plural forms of -ar and -ir verbs are identical to those of the present tense.
A few examples of regular verbs in the preterite tense are:
-AR verbs
- Trabajé por tres horas.
- Rechazaste la oferta.
- Abrió la ventana.
- Ahorramos mucho dinero.
- Hablasteis en voz alta.
- Prepararon la cena.
-ER verbs
- Corrí las 26 millas.
- Comiste una paella valenciana.
- Bebió agua.
- Perdimos el dinero.
- Vendisteis el coche.
- Temieron el resultado.
-IR verbs
- Repetí la pregunta.
- Viviste allí por años.
- Estudió en la biblioteca.
- Subimos al coche.
- Discutisteis el asunto.
- Abolieron la esclavitud.
Uses
The preterite is the narrative past, while the imperfect is the descriptive past. It is sometimes difficult to discern "narrative" from "descriptive," so in order to use these tenses correctly it is helpful to study carefully the speaker's primary intent.
1. The preterite reports past, completed actions, no matter how
long they lasted or how many times they occured, such as:
- Ayer hablé con mi padre. (I spoke to my father yesterday.)
- Ellos comenzaron a las diez. (They began at ten o'clock.)
- Visité Buenos Aires seis veces. (I visited Buenos Aires six times.)
2. It describes a mental or physical condition in terms of a
past, completed state.
- Estuve en aquella esquina por tres horas. (I was on that corner for three hours.)
- Me gustó la película Retrato de Teresa. (I enjoyed the film Retrato de Teresa.)
See also
The imperfect
The preterite and the imperfect
contrasted
Verbs
