Preterit Tense (basic past tense)

Question 1

(for regular verbs) -ar

Answer 1

(drop -ar)
yo - é
tú - aste
él, ella, usted - ó
nosotros - amos
ellos, ellas, ustedes - aron

Question 2

(for regular verbs) -er & -ir

Answer 2

(drop -er or -ir)
yo - í
tú - iste
él, ella, usted - ió
nosotros - imos
ellos, ellas, ustedes - ieron

Question 3

Preterit Past Tense is used to express

Answer 3

• an action that was totally completed in the past (ex, they traveled last month)
• an action completed at a definite, specific moment in the past (ex, he came back at 4 oclock)
  -an action or event that lasted for a specific period of time. If you can determine how long the action took place, use the preterit.
• a series of actions or events completed in the past. Note that you may not be able to determine when these actions took place or for how long, yet you can identify a series of specific actions in the past. (ex, I arrived at the office, prepared a cup of coffee and called a client)

Question 4

yo form spelling changes
(in the preterit, these changes ONLY apply when conjugating to “yo” form)

Answer 4

Verb that end in -car change the “c” to “qu”
Verbs that end in -gar change the “g” to “gu”
Verbs that end in -zar change the “z” to “c”
NOTE: You still have to end the appropriate conjugation ending

Question 5

Some verbs change the “i” to “y” in the third person singular and plural forms

Answer 5

yo - í
tú - iste
él, ella, usted - yó
nosotros - imos
ellos, ellas, ustedes - yeron

Question 6

Verbs that follow the “i” to “y” in preterit tense he/she/it and they forms

Answer 6

leer, oír, construir, caer(se), creer, poseer, desoír, concluir, contribuir, distribuir, huir, incluir, intuir

Question 7

NOTE ABOUT leer & oír

Answer 7

All the forms on leer and oír have accented í except the ellas/ellos form

Question 8

Irregular in Preterite Tense - ESTAR

Answer 8

estar (to be)

– estuve
– estuviste
– estuvo
– estuvimos
– estuvieron

Question 9

T1 Irregular in Preterite Tense - Estar Endings

Answer 9

All verbs that have an irregular stem (root) in the preterite have the same ending as the verb estar (to be)
(verb in infinitive → stem changed root, then you just add estar endings for conjugation)
andar → anduv
estar → estuv
poder → pud
poner → pus
querer → quis
saber → supe
tener → tuv
hacer → hic
traer → tra
venir → vin
conducir → conduj
decir → dij

Question 10

T2 Irregular in Preterite Tense - third person singular and plural VOWEL change.

Answer 10

When conjugated, some irregular preterite verbs that end in -ir, change e to i and o to u in the third person singular (él, ella, usted) and the third person plural (ellos, ellas, ustedes) of the preterite.

verbs that change e to i and o to u are…
sentir (feel)
pedir (ask)
preferir (prefer)
mentir (lie)
seguir (follow)
sonreír (smile)
repetir (repeat)
teñir (dye)
elegir (choose)
morir (die)
dormir (sleep)
reñir (quarrel)
medir (measure)

Question 11

SER (TO BE) / IR (TO GO)

Answer 11

Ser and ir have the same conjugation forms in the preterite past tense.

– fui
– fuiste
– fue
– fuimos
– fuisteis
– fueron