Hacer Preterite Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The preterite of hacer — to do — is the form you need for finished actions in the past. Hacer means to do and to make, and it powers the weather (hace sol, hace frío), time expressions (hace dos años), and dozens of set phrases: hacer la cama, hacer ejercicio, hacer una pregunta. It is one of the most irregular verbs in the language, with hago, hice and haré. This page gives you the complete preterite table for hacer, how it is formed, when to use it, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “Ayer yo hice un pastel de chocolate.” — “Yesterday I made a chocolate cake”.

Preterite conjugation of hacer

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for hacer. Hacer is an irregular -er verb (irregular in present, preterite, future, conditional, present-subjunctive, imperfect-subjunctive, past-participle, present-perfect, pluperfect, future-perfect, conditional-perfect, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative), so watch out for the forms that break the pattern — they are the ones learners need to memorise.

Preterite indicative — hacer

Person Form
yo hice
tú hiciste
él/ella/Ud. hizo
nosotros/as hicimos
vosotros/as hicisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. hicieron

The gerund of hacer is haciendo and the past participle is hecho. The participle matters here because the preterite is often confused with the perfect tenses — keep them apart.

How the preterite of hacer is formed

The preterite of hacer does not follow the regular pattern. If hacer were regular, the preterite forms would be yo → hací, tú → haciste, él/ella/Ud. → hació, nosotros/as → hacimos, vosotros/as → hacisteis, ellos/ellas/Uds. → hacieron — but hacer breaks the pattern in this tense: the forms are hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis and hicieron.

The preterite stem here is hic-, which you cannot get from the infinitive by rule — it has to be learnt as part of the verb. The endings then attach to that stem: hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis and hicieron. This is the same pattern the verb follows in the imperfect subjunctive, which is built on the preterite third-person plural, so learning the preterite pays twice.

A note on spelling: none of the preterite forms of hacer carries a written accent, which is one less thing to memorise — but do not add one by habit. Copy the forms from the table above exactly as written.

When to use the preterite of hacer

1. Completed actions at a specific time

Use the preterite for an action that started and finished in the past. For example, with hacer: “Ayer yo hice un pastel de chocolate.” — “Yesterday I made a chocolate cake”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

2. A sequence of actions

Use the preterite to list one finished action after another. For example, with hacer: “Ella hizo todas las preguntas del examen.” — “She answered all the exam questions”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

3. Actions that interrupt an ongoing situation

Use the preterite for the action that breaks into a longer background scene. For example, with hacer: “Nosotros hicimos un viaje a Sevilla.” — “We made a trip to Seville”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

4. Sudden changes and achievements

Use the preterite for a change of state or something achieved at one moment. For example, with hacer: “Ellos hicieron la maleta anoche.” — “They packed the suitcase last night”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Preterite vs imperfect: hacer finished, hacer in progress

The preterite and the imperfect are the two past tenses, and choosing between them is the hardest decision in Spanish past-tense grammar. The preterite is for what happened and finished; the imperfect is for what was happening, what used to happen, and the background. Compare the pairs below — the preterite form comes from this page, the imperfect form from the full conjugation table.

  • Preterite tense: “Ayer yo hice la tarea.” — “Yesterday I did the homework.”

  • Imperfect: “De niño, yo hacía la tarea.” — “As a child, I used to do the homework.”

  • Preterite tense: “Ella hizo la tarea a las ocho.” — “She did the homework at eight.”

  • Imperfect: “Ella hacía la tarea cada día.” — “She used to do the homework every day.”

  • Preterite tense: “Nosotros hicimos la tarea el sábado.” — “We did the homework on Saturday.”

  • Imperfect: “Nosotros hacíamos la tarea todos los sábados.” — “We used to do the homework every Saturday.”

Example sentences: hacer in the preterite

Six sentences using only the preterite of hacer, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “Ayer yo hice un pastel de chocolate.” — “Yesterday I made a chocolate cake.”
  • “Ella hizo todas las preguntas del examen.” — “She answered all the exam questions.”
  • “Nosotros hicimos un viaje a Sevilla.” — “We made a trip to Seville.”
  • “Ellos hicieron la maleta anoche.” — “They packed the suitcase last night.”
  • “¿Tú hiciste los deberes?” — “Did you do your homework?”
  • “El año pasado hizo mucho frío en enero.” — “Last year it was very cold in January.”

Common mistakes with hacer in the preterite

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo hace la tarea — wrong person.

Right: Yo hice la tarea.

Hacer is a go-verb: the yo form is hago, not hace.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Ayer yo hacé un pastel.

Right: Ayer yo hice un pastel.

The preterite of hacer is hice — the stem changes completely, it is not hacé.

Quiz: hacer in the preterite

Eight questions on the preterite of hacer. Answers with explanations follow each question.

1. What is the yo form of hacer in the preterite?

  • A) hice
  • B) hiciste
  • C) hizo
  • D) hicimos

Answer: A — The yo form in the preterite is hice.

2. What is the tú form of hacer in the preterite?

  • A) hice
  • B) hizo
  • C) hicimos
  • D) hiciste

Answer: D — The tú form in the preterite is hiciste.

3. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of hacer in the preterite?

  • A) hiciste
  • B) hicimos
  • C) hizo
  • D) hice

Answer: C — The él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite is hizo.

4. What is the nosotros/as form of hacer in the preterite?

  • A) hizo
  • B) hicimos
  • C) hice
  • D) hiciste

Answer: B — The nosotros/as form in the preterite is hicimos.

5. Fill in the blank: “Ayer yo ___ un pastel de chocolate.” (Yesterday I made a chocolate cake.)

  • A) hice
  • B) hiciste
  • C) hizo
  • D) hicimos

Answer: A — The sentence needs hice.

6. Fill in the blank: “Ella ___ todas las preguntas del examen.” (She answered all the exam questions.)

  • A) hice
  • B) hiciste
  • C) hicimos
  • D) hizo

Answer: D — The sentence needs hizo.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo hace la tarea — wrong person.
  • B) Yo hice la tarea.

Answer: B — Hacer is a go-verb: the yo form is hago, not hace.

8. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Ayer yo hice un pastel.
  • B) Ayer yo hacé un pastel.

Answer: A — The preterite of hacer is hice — the stem changes completely, it is not hacé.

Frequently asked questions

Is hacer regular in the preterite?

No. hacer is irregular in the preterite: the forms are hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis and hicieron. There is no rule that produces them from the infinitive, so they have to be learnt as a set — the quiz above is a good place to start.

What is the yo form of hacer in the preterite?

It is hice. The yo form is the one learners use most and the one that most often breaks the pattern — for hacer it is the form to learn first, before the rest of the table.

When do I use the preterite of hacer instead of the present?

Use the preterite when the action is finished and tied to a specific moment — yesterday, last week, at eight o’clock. If the action was ongoing, habitual, or just background to another event, the imperfect is the right choice, not the preterite.

How can I remember the preterite forms of hacer?

Say the six forms aloud in order — hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis, hicieron — three times a day for a week, always in a sentence, never as a bare list. Then use the Spanish Verb Quiz to test yourself, and the full conjugation page for hacer to see the verb in every tense.

Say it yourself

Reading is not enough — say the verb aloud before you move on. Use the forms from the tables on this page and answer these three prompts as full sentences. First, say a sentence about yourself in the present tense: “Yo hago…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo hice…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo haré…”. If you can answer all three without looking at the tables, the forms are starting to stick. If you hesitate, go back to the examples above, read them aloud twice, and try again. Speaking the forms is what turns a table you have seen into a verb you can use.

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