Spanish Preterite Tense Conjugation Guide
The Spanish preterite is the tense for finished actions in the past: what happened, when it happened, and in what order. Ayer comí, el año pasado viajé, a las ocho salí — every one of those is a completed event with a clear end. This guide gives you the full formation rules for regular -ar, -er and -ir verbs, the irregular preterites that have to be learnt as sets, the usage rules with examples, the contrast with the imperfect, the mistakes learners make, and a quiz to check yourself. All forms come from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables.
How the preterite is formed
Take the infinitive, remove the -ar, -er or -ir ending, and add the preterite endings. For -ar verbs the endings are -é, -aste, -ó, -amos, -asteis, -aron. For -er and -ir verbs they are -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, -ieron — the two classes share their preterite endings completely. Note the written accents on the first and third person singular: hablé, habló, comí, comió. Here are the three model verbs:
hablar (-ar verb)
| Person | hablar |
|---|---|
| yo | hablé |
| tú | hablaste |
| él/ella/Ud. | habló |
| nosotros/as | hablamos |
| vosotros/as | hablasteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | hablaron |
Gerund: hablando. Past participle: hablado.
comer (-er verb)
| Person | comer |
|---|---|
| yo | comí |
| tú | comiste |
| él/ella/Ud. | comió |
| nosotros/as | comimos |
| vosotros/as | comisteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | comieron |
Gerund: comiendo. Past participle: comido.
vivir (-ir verb)
| Person | vivir |
|---|---|
| yo | viví |
| tú | viviste |
| él/ella/Ud. | vivió |
| nosotros/as | vivimos |
| vosotros/as | vivisteis |
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | vivieron |
Gerund: viviendo. Past participle: vivido.
Irregular verbs in the preterite
The preterite is the tense with the most irregular verbs, but they fall into a small number of families. Learn the families and you learn the whole set. For the complete list, see the Spanish irregular verbs page.
Totally irregular: ser and ir share one preterite — fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fuisteis, fueron. Only the context tells them apart. Estar takes estuv- (estuve, estuviste, estuvo), haber takes hub- (hube, hubiste, hubo), and dar takes di, diste, dio with no accents.
The -uve / -uje families: tener → tuve, poder → pude, saber → supe, querer → quise, venir → vine, poner → puse, andar → anduve, caber → cupe. These all end in -e in the yo form and have no accents anywhere in the preterite.
The -j- family: decir → dije, traer → traje, conducir → conduje, producir → produje. Every -ducir verb takes -duje, and the third person plural ends in -eron without an accent: dijeron, trajeron, condujeron.
Stem-changing preterites: -ir verbs with an e → i or o → u change in the third persons — pedir → pidió, pidieron; seguir → siguió, siguieron; sentir → sintió, sintieron; dormir → durmió, durmieron; morir → murió. The first and second persons keep the plain stem.
Spelling changes only: verbs that change spelling to keep the sound — llegar → llegué, empezar → empecé, buscar → busqué, creer → creí, creyó (the i becomes y), leer → leí, leyó. Everything else about these verbs is regular.
When to use the preterite
1. A completed action at a specific time
Ayer comí en casa. — Yesterday I ate at home. Use the preterite when the action is finished and tied to a moment: ayer, anoche, el año pasado, a las ocho.
2. A sequence of finished actions
Llegué, saludé y me senté. — I arrived, said hello and sat down. Use the preterite to list one finished action after another, in order.
3. An action that interrupts a longer scene
Dormía cuando sonó el teléfono. — I was sleeping when the phone rang. The interruption takes the preterite; the background takes the imperfect.
4. A sudden change or achievement
De repente entendí el problema. — Suddenly I understood the problem. Use the preterite for changes of state and things achieved at one moment.
5. A finished period of time
Viví en Londres dos años. — I lived in London for two years. Use the preterite when the period is closed and finished.
Preterite vs imperfect
The preterite is for what happened and finished; the imperfect is for what was happening, what used to happen, and the background. Compare: “Ayer hablé con María” (one finished conversation) with “Hablaba con María cada día” (a habit). And “Llovió a las tres” (it rained at three) with “Llovía cuando salí” (it was raining when I left). The time expression usually tells you which one to use: ayer, anoche and el año pasado point to the preterite; mientras, cada día and de niño point to the imperfect. Use the Preterite vs Imperfect tool to practise the choice side by side.
Common mistakes in the preterite
Mistake 1
Wrong: Writing the preterite without its accents: hable, comio.
The first and third person singular carry accents: hablé, habló, comí, comió, viví, vivió. Without the accent the form is misspelt.
Mistake 2
Wrong: Using the imperfect for a finished action: ayer hablaba con María.
A finished action at a specific time takes the preterite: ayer hablé con María. The imperfect is for habits and background, not for one-off events.
Mistake 3
Wrong: Guessing irregular preterites by rule: decí, tení, podí.
The irregular preterites have their own stems: dije, tuve, pude, hice, vine, supe, quise, puse. They have to be learnt as a set — there is no ending that produces them.
Mistake 4
Wrong: Forgetting the spelling change: llegé, empezé, buscé.
Keep the sound with the spelling: llegué, empecé, busqué. The g becomes gu and the z becomes c before e.
Mistake 5
Wrong: Adding an accent to one-syllable preterites: ví, dí, fui.
One-syllable forms take no accent: vi, di, fui, fue. The accent belongs to the subjunctive dé, not to the preterite di.
Quiz: the preterite
Eight questions on the preterite. Answers with explanations follow each question.
1. What is the yo form of hablar in the preterite?
- A) hablé
- B) hablaste
- C) habló
- D) hablamos
Answer: A — The yo form in the preterite is hablé.
2. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of comer in the preterite?
- A) comí
- B) comiste
- C) comimos
- D) comió
Answer: D — The él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite is comió.
3. What is the nosotros/as form of vivir in the preterite?
- A) viviste
- B) vivió
- C) vivimos
- D) viví
Answer: C — The nosotros/as form in the preterite is vivimos.
4. What is the yo form of ser in the preterite?
- A) fuimos
- B) fui
- C) fuiste
- D) fue
Answer: B — The yo form in the preterite is fui.
5. What is the él/ella/Ud. form of tener in the preterite?
- A) tuvo
- B) tuve
- C) tuviste
- D) tuvimos
Answer: A — The él/ella/Ud. form in the preterite is tuvo.
6. What is the ellos/ellas/Uds. form of decir in the preterite?
- A) dije
- B) dijiste
- C) dijo
- D) dijeron
Answer: D — The ellos/ellas/Uds. form in the preterite is dijeron.
7. Which sentence is correct?
- A) Ayer yo hablaba con María.
- B) Ayer yo hablé con María.
Answer: B — A finished action yesterday takes the preterite: hablé.
8. Which sentence is correct?
- A) Ayer yo dije que no.
- B) Ayer yo decí que no.
Answer: A — The preterite of decir is dije, from the irregular dij- stem.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Spanish preterite used for?
Finished actions in the past: what happened, when it happened, and in what order. Ayer comí, el año pasado viajé, a las ocho salí — every one is a completed event.
What is the difference between the preterite and the imperfect?
The preterite is for finished actions at a specific moment; the imperfect is for what was happening, what used to happen, and the background. Ayer hablé (one finished conversation) against hablaba cada día (a habit).
Which verbs are irregular in the preterite?
The most frequent ones: ser and ir (fui), estar (estuve), tener (tuve), hacer (hice), poder (pude), decir (dije), venir (vine), saber (supe), querer (quise), poner (puse), and the -ducir family (produje). The full list is on the Spanish irregular verbs page.
Do preterite forms have accents?
The first and third person singular do: hablé, habló, comí, comió. One-syllable forms do not: vi, di, fui, fue. The irregular preterites have no accents at all: tuve, dije, hice.
How do I practise the preterite?
Learn the irregular stems as a set — tuve, pude, dije, hice, vine, supe, quise, puse — and drill them in sentences about yesterday. Then use the Preterite Conjugator and the Preterite vs Imperfect tool.