Poner Preterite Tense Conjugation in Spanish

The preterite of poner — to put — is the form you need for finished actions in the past. Poner means to put and to place, and it stretches into set phrases: poner la mesa (to set the table), poner atención, ponerse (to put on clothes, to become), poner una película. It is a go-verb (pongo) with the irregular preterite puse, the future stem pondr- and the participle puesto. This page gives you the complete preterite table for poner, 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 puse las llaves en el bolso.” — “Yesterday I put the keys in my bag”.

Preterite conjugation of poner

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for poner. Poner 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 — poner

Person Form
yo puse
tú pusiste
él/ella/Ud. puso
nosotros/as pusimos
vosotros/as pusisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds. pusieron

The gerund of poner is poniendo and the past participle is puesto. The participle matters here because the preterite is often confused with the perfect tenses — keep them apart.

How the preterite of poner is formed

The preterite of poner does not follow the regular pattern. If poner were regular, the preterite forms would be yo → poní, tú → poniste, él/ella/Ud. → ponió, nosotros/as → ponimos, vosotros/as → ponisteis, ellos/ellas/Uds. → ponieron — but poner breaks the pattern in this tense: the forms are puse, pusiste, puso, pusimos, pusisteis and pusieron.

The preterite stem here is pus-, 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: puse, pusiste, puso, pusimos, pusisteis and pusieron. 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 poner 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 poner

1. Completed actions at a specific time

Use the preterite for an action that started and finished in the past. For example, with poner: “Ayer yo puse las llaves en el bolso.” — “Yesterday I put the keys in my bag”. 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 poner: “Ella puso una película interesante.” — “She put on an interesting film”. 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 poner: “Nosotros pusimos el despertador a las seis.” — “We set the alarm for six”. 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 poner: “Ellos pusieron la mesa para diez personas.” — “They set the table for ten people”. Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Preterite vs imperfect: poner finished, poner 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 puse la mesa.” — “Yesterday I put the table.”

  • Imperfect: “De niño, yo ponía la mesa.” — “As a child, I used to put the table.”

  • Preterite tense: “Ella puso la mesa a las ocho.” — “She put the table at eight.”

  • Imperfect: “Ella ponía la mesa cada día.” — “She used to put the table every day.”

  • Preterite tense: “Nosotros pusimos la mesa el sábado.” — “We put the table on Saturday.”

  • Imperfect: “Nosotros poníamos la mesa todos los sábados.” — “We used to put the table every Saturday.”

Example sentences: poner in the preterite

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

  • “Ayer yo puse las llaves en el bolso.” — “Yesterday I put the keys in my bag.”
  • “Ella puso una película interesante.” — “She put on an interesting film.”
  • “Nosotros pusimos el despertador a las seis.” — “We set the alarm for six.”
  • “Ellos pusieron la mesa para diez personas.” — “They set the table for ten people.”
  • “¿Tú pusiste sal en la sopa?” — “Did you put salt in the soup?”
  • “El profesor puso un examen sorpresa.” — “The teacher set a surprise exam.”

Common mistakes with poner in the preterite

Mistake 1

Wrong: Yo pono la mesa.

Right: Yo puse la mesa.

The yo form is pongo — poner is a go-verb, not pono.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Ayer yo poní las llaves.

Right: Ayer yo puse las llaves.

The preterite is puse, from the irregular pus- stem, never poní.

Quiz: poner in the preterite

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

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

  • A) puse
  • B) pusiste
  • C) puso
  • D) pusimos

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

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

  • A) puse
  • B) puso
  • C) pusimos
  • D) pusiste

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

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

  • A) pusiste
  • B) pusimos
  • C) puso
  • D) puse

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

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

  • A) puso
  • B) pusimos
  • C) puse
  • D) pusiste

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

5. Fill in the blank: “Ayer yo ___ las llaves en el bolso.” (Yesterday I put the keys in my bag.)

  • A) puse
  • B) pusiste
  • C) puso
  • D) pusimos

Answer: A — The sentence needs puse.

6. Fill in the blank: “Ella ___ una película interesante.” (She put on an interesting film.)

  • A) puse
  • B) pusiste
  • C) pusimos
  • D) puso

Answer: D — The sentence needs puso.

7. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Yo pono la mesa.
  • B) Yo puse la mesa.

Answer: B — The yo form is pongo — poner is a go-verb, not pono.

8. Which sentence is correct?

  • A) Ayer yo puse las llaves.
  • B) Ayer yo poní las llaves.

Answer: A — The preterite is puse, from the irregular pus- stem, never poní.

Frequently asked questions

Is poner regular in the preterite?

No. poner is irregular in the preterite: the forms are puse, pusiste, puso, pusimos, pusisteis and pusieron. 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 poner in the preterite?

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

When do I use the preterite of poner 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 poner?

Say the six forms aloud in order — puse, pusiste, puso, pusimos, pusisteis, pusieron — 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 poner 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 pongo…”. Second, say a sentence about yesterday in the preterite: “Ayer yo puse…”. Third, say a sentence about tomorrow in the future: “Mañana yo pondré…”. 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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