Entrever in the Preterite Tense
Entrever means “to glimpse, to make out”, and this page covers exactly one thing: entrever in the preterite tense. The preterite is the tense Spanish speakers reach for when they talk about what is finished and done. On this page you will find the full preterite table for entrever, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about entrever in the preterite. For example: “Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles.” — Yesterday, I glimpsed a light among the trees. Everything on this page uses the forms of entrever exactly as they are conjugated in the preterite, so you can trust every form you see here.
Entrever in the Preterite Tense — full table
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | entreví |
| tú | entreviste |
| él/ella/Ud. | entrevió |
| nosotros/as | entrevimos |
| vosotros/as | entrevisteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | entrevieron |
Gerund: entreviendo · Past participle: entrevisto
The gerund is entreviendo, which you use with estar to say what is happening right now: “Estoy entreviendo” means the action of entrever is in progress at this very moment. The past participle is entrevisto, which you use with haber in the perfect tenses: “he entrevisto” is the present perfect, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the preterite is only one part of how entrever is used.
How the preterite of entrever is formed
Entrever is regular in the preterite tense. Take the stem entrev and add the preterite endings for -er verbs: -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, -ieron, giving entreví, entreviste, entrevió, entrevimos, entrevisteis, entrevieron. Watch the accents: the yo form is entreví and the él/ella/Ud. form is entrevió.
The irregularity of entrever is in its past participle, entrevisto, not in the preterite, so the table above is the whole story for this tense. Remember the participle for the perfect tenses: he entrevisto, has entrevisto, ha entrevisto.
When to use the preterite of entrever
The preterite is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use entrever in the preterite most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.
1. One finished action
The preterite reports a single action that started and finished in the past. The action is done, counted once, and the story moves on. Example: “Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles.” — Yesterday, I glimpsed a light among the trees.
2. A sequence of events
In a story, each preterite form is one step forward in time. When several things happened one after another, the preterite lists them in order. Example: “Nosotros entrevimos una figura en la niebla.” — We glimpsed a figure in the fog.
3. A specific time marker
Time words such as ayer, anoche, el año pasado and la semana pasada point to the preterite. They name a finished moment, and the verb must match. Example: “Él entrevió la costa desde el barco ayer.” — He glimpsed the coast from the boat yesterday.
4. A sudden change or interruption
The preterite describes sudden changes and interruptions: something happened, and the situation was different afterwards. Example: “Ellos entrevieron algo raro en su mirada de repente.” — They glimpsed something strange in his look suddenly.
5. A completed time frame
When an action took place inside a period of time that is now over, the preterite is the right tense, because the period itself is finished. Example: “Tú entreviste una luz entre los árboles la semana pasada.” — You glimpsed a light among the trees last week.
Preterite Tense vs Imperfect: how to choose
The closest tense to the preterite is the imperfect, and choosing between them is one of the hardest decisions in Spanish. The rule is simple: the preterite reports one finished action, while the imperfect describes background, habits in the past, or an action that was in progress when something else happened. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is whether the action is finished and counted, or ongoing and descriptive. Time words help: ayer and de repente point to the preterite, while mientras and todos los días in the past point to the imperfect.
Preterite Tense: “Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles.” — Yesterday, I glimpsed a light among the trees.
Imperfect: “Yo entreveía una luz entre los árboles cada día.” — I used to glimpse a light among the trees every day.
The preterite sentence reports one finished action; the imperfect sentence describes a habit in the past. Ayer points to the preterite, cada día in the past points to the imperfect.
Preterite Tense: “Anoche, él entrevió una figura en la niebla.” — Last night, he glimpsed a figure in the fog.
Imperfect: “Él entreveía una figura en la niebla todos los días.” — He used to glimpse a figure in the fog every day.
Anoche names one finished night, so the preterite is right; todos los días in the past describes a routine, so the imperfect is right.
Preterite Tense: “Nosotros entrevimos la costa desde el barco ayer.” — We glimpsed the coast from the boat yesterday.
Imperfect: “Nosotros entreveíamos la costa desde el barco cuando éramos jóvenes.” — We used to glimpse the coast from the boat when we were young.
The preterite sentence counts one finished action; the imperfect sentence describes how things used to be. That difference — finished event versus background — is the whole decision.
Example sentences: entrever in the preterite
Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions, the objects, the other verbs — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.
“Entreví una luz entre los árboles.” — I glimpsed a light among the trees.
“Entreviste una figura en la niebla.” — You glimpsed a figure in the fog.
“Entrevió la costa desde el barco.” — He/she glimpsed the coast from the boat.
“Entrevimos algo raro en su mirada.” — We glimpsed something strange in his look.
“Entrevisteis una luz entre los árboles.” — You glimpsed a light among the trees.
“Entrevieron una figura en la niebla.” — They glimpsed a figure in the fog.
“Entreví la costa desde el barco.” — I glimpsed the coast from the boat.
“Entrevió algo raro en su mirada.” — He/she glimpsed something strange in his look.
Common mistakes with entrever in the preterite
These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.
Wrong: “Ellos entrevió una luz entre los árboles.” Right: “Ellos entrevieron una luz entre los árboles.” Why: Ellos needs the ellos form entrevieron. The singular entrevió belongs with él, ella or a singular noun.
Wrong: “De niño, yo entreví la costa desde el barco todos los días.” Right: “De niño, yo entreveía la costa desde el barco todos los días.” Why: For a repeated habit in the past, use the imperfect (entreveía), not the preterite. The preterite (entreví) is for one finished action.
Wrong: “Nosotros entreviste la costa desde el barco.” Right: “Nosotros entrevimos la costa desde el barco.” Why: Nosotros needs entrevimos. The tú form entreviste belongs with tú.
Wrong: “Ellos entreví algo raro en su mirada.” Right: “Ellos entrevieron algo raro en su mirada.” Why: The verb must agree with its subject. Ellos needs the ellos form entrevieron, not the yo form entreví.
Quiz: entrever in the preterite
Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.
1. Complete the sentence: “Yo ______ una luz entre los árboles.” (A light among the trees.)
- (a) entreví
- (b) entreviste
- (c) entrevió
Answer: entreví — The yo form of entrever in the preterite is entreví. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
2. Complete the sentence: “¿Tú ______ una figura en la niebla?” (A figure in the fog.)
- (a) entreví
- (b) entrevió
- (c) entreviste
Answer: entreviste — The tú form of entrever in the preterite is entreviste. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
3. Complete the sentence: “Él ______ la costa desde el barco.” (The coast from the boat.)
- (a) entreviste
- (b) entrevió
- (c) entreví
Answer: entrevió — The él/ella/Ud. form of entrever in the preterite is entrevió. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
4. Complete the sentence: “Nosotros ______ algo raro en su mirada.” (Something strange in his look.)
- (a) entrevimos
- (b) entreví
- (c) entreviste
Answer: entrevimos — The nosotros/as form of entrever in the preterite is entrevimos. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
5. What is the vosotros/as form of entrever in the preterite?
- (a) entreví
- (b) entreviste
- (c) entrevisteis
Answer: entrevisteis — From the table above: vosotros/as takes entrevisteis. Say it with the example sentence “Vosotros entrevisteis una luz entre los árboles.” to fix it in your memory.
6. Complete the sentence: “Ellos ______ una figura en la niebla.” (A figure in the fog.)
- (a) entreviste
- (b) entrevieron
- (c) entreví
Answer: entrevieron — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form of entrever in the preterite is entrevieron. The other options are the forms for different persons, so they do not agree with the subject.
7. Which is the correct yo form of entrever in the preterite?
- (a) entreví
- (b) entreviste
- (c) entrevió
Answer: entreví — The yo form is entreví. The other two options are the forms for other persons.
8. Which sentence describes one finished action in the past?
- (a) Yo entreveía una luz entre los árboles cada día.
- (b) Mañana, yo entreveré una luz entre los árboles.
- (c) Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles.
Answer: Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles. — “Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles.” reports a single completed event, so it takes the preterite. The second option describes background or a past habit, and the third looks to the future.
Frequently asked questions
Is entrever regular in the preterite?
Entrever is a spelling-change verb, so some forms change spelling to keep the same consonant sound, but the preterite forms in the table above are the correct ones: entreví, entreviste, entrevió, entrevimos, entrevisteis, entrevieron.
What is the past participle of entrever?
The past participle is entrevisto: 'He entrevisto' means 'I have glimpsed'. It is used with haber in every perfect tense. The gerund is entreviendo.
When do I use the preterite instead of the imperfect for entrever?
Use the preterite for one finished action, as in Ayer, yo entreví una luz entre los árboles. Use the imperfect for a repeated habit or background, as in Yo entreveía una luz entre los árboles cada día. The time words around the verb usually tell you which one fits.
How do I remember the preterite forms of entrever?
Say the six forms out loud in order, three times, with a real sentence for each one: yo entreví, tú entreviste, él/ella/Ud. entrevió, nosotros/as entrevimos, vosotros/as entrevisteis, ellos/ellas/Uds. entrevieron. Then write three of your own sentences with entrever in the preterite, using the examples on this page as models.
Related pages
- Full conjugation of entrever — every tense of entrever in one place.
- Entrever examples and quiz — more sentences with entrever and a ten-question quiz.
- Spanish preterite guide — how the preterite works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the hub for every Spanish verb on VerbFlow.
- Preterite conjugator — conjugate any verb in the preterite instantly.
- Verb quiz — test yourself on entrever and other verbs.