Prohibir Preterite Tense Conjugation in Spanish
The preterite tense of prohibir — "to forbid, to prohibit" in English — is the form you need for completed actions in the past, things that happened once and ended. This page gives you the full preterite conjugation table for prohibir with all six persons, explains exactly how the tense is formed for this verb, shows when to use it with real examples, and finishes with a quiz so you can test yourself. Prohibir means "to forbid" or "to prohibit", and it is the formal opposite of permitir. It appears on signs, in rules, in laws and in parental decisions: prohibido fumar, the law forbids parking here, the doctor forbids salt. The preterite of prohibir is used to report a specific ban that was imposed at a particular moment — yesterday the school banned phones, last year the city prohibited plastic bags. The present tense carries a written accent on the i (prohíbo, prohíbes, prohíbe, prohíben), verified against the standard reference (Reverso Conjugator). To see it in a real sentence: Ayer el director prohibió los móviles en clase. — "Yesterday the headteacher banned mobile phones in class.".
Preterite tense conjugation table: prohibir
Every person of prohibir in the preterite tense. The gerund is prohibiendo and the past participle is prohibido.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| yo | prohibí |
| tú | prohibiste |
| él/ella/Ud. | prohibió |
| nosotros/as | prohibimos |
| vosotros/as | prohibisteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | prohibieron |
How the preterite of prohibir is formed
The preterite of prohibir is built from the stem prohib- plus the preterite endings for -ir verbs. Take the infinitive, drop the -ir ending, and add the ending that matches the person. The table below shows the endings, and the full table above shows them attached to the stem.
| Person | Ending | Form |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -í | prohibí |
| tú | -iste | prohibiste |
| él/ella/Ud. | -ió | prohibió |
| nosotros/as | -imos | prohibimos |
| vosotros/as | -isteis | prohibisteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | -ieron | prohibieron |
Because prohibir is a regular -ir verb, there are no surprises in the preterite: the stem prohib- never changes, and every person takes its normal ending. The only spelling detail to watch is the written accent on the vosotros form, prohibisteis, which carries an accent on the vowel of the ending. Learn the six endings once and you can conjugate any regular -ir verb the same way.
The gerund of prohibir is prohibiendo and the past participle is prohibido. Both are regular for this verb, and the participle is the form you need for all the perfect tenses with haber.
When to use the preterite tense of prohibir
The preterite tense is not one single use — it covers several situations, and prohibir appears in all of them. The five uses below are the ones you will meet most often, each with an example that shows the verb in a natural sentence.
A ban imposed at a specific moment
The preterite reports a completed decision in the past: on a date, in a meeting, a rule was set.
"Ayer el director prohibió los móviles en clase." — "Yesterday the headteacher banned mobile phones in class."
Laws that came into force
When a law or regulation started to apply, the preterite marks that finished starting point.
"El año pasado la ciudad prohibió las bolsas de plástico." — "Last year the city banned plastic bags."
A doctor's order
A medical ban is usually a single completed instruction given at an appointment.
"El médico me prohibió comer sal." — "The doctor forbade me to eat salt."
A parent's decision
Parents forbid something once, firmly, and the preterite carries that finished decision.
"Yo prohibí a mi hijo salir de noche." — "I forbade my son to go out at night."
A sequence of past events
In a story, the preterite moves the action forward: first they banned entry, then they closed the door.
"Ellos prohibieron la entrada y cerraron la puerta." — "They banned entry and closed the door."
The preterite tense vs the closest tenses
Preterite — one finished event vs Imperfect — background or past habit
The preterite reports one finished event — it happened, it ended, the story moves on. The imperfect describes the background — what was happening, what used to happen, how things were. In a story the two work together: the imperfect sets the scene and the preterite tells what happened in it.
- Preterite — one finished event: Yo prohibí fumar en mi casa. — "I banned smoking in my house."
- Imperfect — background or past habit: Yo prohibía fumar en mi casa. — the same idea, placed in the imperfect.
Preterite — what happened vs Present — the rule or habit now
The preterite reports what happened at a finished moment in the past. The present states the rule or the habit that is still true now. Use the preterite when you are telling a story about yesterday, and the present when you are stating how things are in general.
- Preterite — what happened: Tú prohibiste el paso por el jardín. — "You banned walking through the garden."
- Present — the rule or habit now: Tú prohíbes el paso por el jardín. — the same idea, placed in the present.
Preterite — finished time vs Present perfect — past connected to now
The preterite belongs to a finished time — yesterday, last year, on Monday. The present perfect connects the past to the present — something that happened recently, or that has happened up to now. If the time is finished, use the preterite; if the time reaches into the present, use the present perfect.
- Preterite — finished time: El ayuntamiento prohibió aparcar en la plaza. — "The council banned parking in the square."
- Present perfect — past connected to now: El ayuntamiento ha prohibido aparcar en la plaza. — the same idea, placed in the present perfect.
Examples: prohibir in the preterite tense
Seven sentences that show prohibir in the preterite tense only, across all six persons. Read each one aloud, notice the ending, and check the translation.
- Yo prohibí fumar en mi casa. — "I banned smoking in my house."
- Tú prohibiste el paso por el jardín. — "You banned walking through the garden."
- El ayuntamiento prohibió aparcar en la plaza. — "The council banned parking in the square."
- Nosotros prohibimos las bebidas en la biblioteca. — "We banned drinks in the library."
- Vosotros prohibisteis la música alta por la noche. — "You banned loud music at night."
- Los vecinos prohibieron jugar al fútbol en el patio. — "The neighbours banned playing football in the courtyard."
- La empresa prohibió usar el correo personal. — "The company banned using personal email."
Common mistakes with prohibir in the preterite tense
These are the errors learners actually make with prohibir in the preterite tense. Each one shows the wrong form, the right form, and why the right form is right.
✗ *El director prohibió a los móviles en clase (using a + noun where an infinitive belongs).
✓ Correct: El director prohibió los móviles en clase.
Prohibir takes a direct object or an infinitive: prohibir los móviles, prohibir fumar. The personal a is only for people: prohibir a los alumnos salir.
✗ *Ayer el director prohíbe los móviles (present instead of preterite for a finished past event).
✓ Correct: Ayer el director prohibió los móviles en clase.
Ayer marks a completed past action, so the preterite prohibió is needed, not the present prohíbe/prohíbe.
✗ *Nosotros prohibimos fumar en la oficina (written as present when the ban happened last week).
✓ Correct: La semana pasada nosotros prohibimos fumar en la oficina.
Prohibimos is both present and preterite for nosotros — the time expression (la semana pasada) tells the reader which tense it is, so include one.
✗ *El médico me prohibió a comer sal.
✓ Correct: El médico me prohibió comer sal.
After prohibir, the infinitive follows directly with no preposition: prohibir comer, not prohibir a comer.
Quiz: prohibir in the preterite tense
Eight questions on the preterite tense of prohibir. Choose the best answer for each one, then check the answer key below — every answer is explained.
1. Which is the correct preterite tense form of prohibir for tú?
- a) prohibió
- b) prohibí
- c) prohibiste
- d) prohibieron
2. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ fumar en mi casa. — "I banned smoking in my house."
- a) prohibí
- b) prohíbo
- c) prohibiste
- d) prohibieron
3. Complete the sentence: El año pasado la ciudad ______ las bolsas de plástico. — "Last year the city banned plastic bags."
- a) prohíbe
- b) prohibimos
- c) prohibiste
- d) prohibió
4. Which is the correct preterite tense form of prohibir for nosotros?
- a) prohibieron
- b) prohibiste
- c) prohibí
- d) prohibimos
5. Which sentence uses prohibir correctly in the preterite tense?
- a) El ayuntamiento prohíbe aparcar en la plaza.
- b) El ayuntamiento prohibiste aparcar en la plaza.
- c) El ayuntamiento prohibió aparcar en la plaza.
6. Which is the correct preterite tense form of prohibir for vosotros?
- a) prohibió
- b) prohibisteis
- c) prohibí
- d) prohibiste
7. Complete the sentence: Yo ______ a mi hijo salir de noche. — "I forbade my son to go out at night."
- a) prohibieron
- b) prohíbo
- c) prohibió
- d) prohibí
8. What is the gerund of prohibir?
- a) prohibido
- b) prohíbo
- c) prohibiendo
- d) prohibimos
Answer key
c) prohibiste — The tú form is prohibiste. The -s ending belongs to tú in the preterite; prohibí is yo, prohibió is él/ella and prohibieron is ellos/ellas.
a) prohibí — The sentence needs the yo form in the preterite: prohibí. The other options are the wrong person or the wrong tense.
d) prohibió — The subject is él/ella/Ud., so the preterite form is prohibió.
d) prohibimos — Nosotros takes prohibimos. In the preterite the nosotros ending for -ir verbs is -imos, attached to the stem prohib-.
c) El ayuntamiento prohibió aparcar en la plaza. — El ayuntamiento prohibió aparcar en la plaza. is correct: the verb agrees with its subject. The other sentences use the wrong person or the wrong tense.
b) prohibisteis — Vosotros takes prohibisteis. Remember the written accent on the ending — it is part of the correct spelling.
d) prohibí — The subject is yo, so the preterite form is prohibí.
c) prohibiendo — The gerund is prohibiendo. It is the form you use with estar for the progressive (estar + gerund), and it is not the past participle prohibido.
Frequently asked questions
Is prohibir regular in the preterite tense?
Yes. prohibir is a regular -ir verb, so its preterite tense follows the standard endings exactly: prohibí, prohibiste, prohibió, prohibimos, prohibisteis and prohibieron.
What is the gerund and the past participle of prohibir?
The gerund is prohibiendo and the past participle is prohibido. Use the gerund with estar for the progressive, and the participle with haber for the perfect tenses.
How do you say "I to forbid, to prohibit" in Spanish?
Say prohibí. For example: Yo prohibí fumar en mi casa. — "I banned smoking in my house.".
What is the difference between prohibir and permitir?
prohibir means "to forbid, to prohibit", while permitir means "to allow". They are related words that learners often meet together, but they are not interchangeable — use prohibir when you mean "to forbid, to prohibit" and permitir when you mean "to allow". The full conjugation of permitir is on its own page.
Related links
- Full conjugation of prohibir — every tense and mood, with the complete tables.
- prohibir examples and quiz — more sentences, dialogues and a longer quiz.
- Spanish Preterite tense guide — how the preterite tense works for all Spanish verbs.
- Spanish verbs — the full list of Spanish verbs on VerbFlow.