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Regular past-tense forms use set endings for -ar and for -er/-ir verbs, plus a small group of irregular stems that share one ending set.
The Spanish preterite tells what happened and finished. If you can attach the right ending to the right verb type, you can talk about yesterday, last week, and a single moment that changed the plan.
This page gives you the endings, the patterns behind them, and drills that build muscle memory. You’ll see regular endings first, then the irregular groups that show up again and again.
What the preterite tense means
Use the preterite for actions with a clear finish. Think of it as a snapshot: the action starts, it ends, and you move on.
Common situations that call for preterite
- A completed action:Terminé la tarea.
- A sequence of events:Me levanté, me duché y salí.
- A clear start or end:La clase empezó a las ocho.
- A counted action:Llamé tres veces.
Time words often point to a closed window: ayer, anoche, el lunes pasado, en 2019, una vez, de repente. When the time window is closed, the verb often follows.
How it differs from the imperfect
The imperfect sets the scene, while the preterite marks the event. One gives background, the other gives the completed action.
Try this pair: Cuando era niño, vivía en Quito (background). Un día me mudé (completed event).
Preterite Tense Endings in Spanish: Regular patterns
Regular verbs in the preterite fall into two ending sets: one for -ar verbs and one shared by -er and -ir verbs. Once you learn the six person endings, you can conjugate a huge chunk of everyday Spanish.
Start by spotting the infinitive ending. If it ends in -ar, you pick the -ar set. If it ends in -er or -ir, you pick the shared set.
-ar verb endings
Take hablar (to speak). Drop -ar, then add the ending:
- Yo hablé
- Tú hablaste
- Él/ella/usted habló
- Nosotros/nosotras hablamos
- Vosotros/vosotras hablasteis
- Ustedes/ellos/ellas hablaron
Two forms carry accents: hablé and habló. Those marks keep stress where Spanish expects it.
-er and -ir verb endings
Now take comer (to eat) and vivir (to live). Both use the same set:
- Yo comí / viví
- Tú comiste / viviste
- Él/ella/usted comió / vivió
- Nosotros/nosotras comimos / vivimos
- Vosotros/vosotras comisteis / vivisteis
- Ustedes/ellos/ellas comieron / vivieron
Pronouns you’ll see on tests and in life
Most courses teach the six standard persons. Two extra pronouns pop up in everyday Spanish: vos in parts of Latin America, and usted as a formal “you.”
Vos uses its own forms in many regions. If your class uses it, learn it as a separate mini-set. If not, you can still read it once you know the verb stem and the idea that it pairs with second-person meaning.
Accent marks you should watch
Accents in the preterite are not decoration. They change stress, and stress can change meaning in writing.
- Habló means “he/she spoke.”
- Hablo means “I speak.”
That one line over the vowel is the signal that you’re in past tense for that third-person form.
Two traps that hit early
- -ar uses é, aste, ó at the top, while -er/-ir uses í, iste, ió.
- Only nosotros has a form that can match the present tense: hablamos. The sentence around it tells you which tense it is.
Preterite tense endings for Spanish verbs in real sentences
Endings stick faster when you tie them to meaning. Build sentences around a time word, a subject, and one verb. Then swap the subject and keep the same stem.
A simple build pattern
Start with a time word, then add the subject and the verb:
- Ayer yo estudié en casa.
- Anoche tú comiste temprano.
- En 2022 ellos viajaron a Perú.
Now change only the subject:
- Ayer nosotros estudiamos en casa.
- Anoche ella comió temprano.
- En 2022 yo viajé a Perú.
A two-column self-check
When you’re unsure, run this check in your head:
- Step 1: Is the infinitive -ar or -er/-ir?
- Step 2: Who did it (yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, ustedes/ellos/ellas)?
If you can answer those two questions, you can choose the ending. That’s it.
Regular endings table
| Person | -ar Ending | -er/-ir Ending |
|---|---|---|
| Yo | é | í |
| Tú | aste | iste |
| Él/Ella/Usted | ó | ió |
| Nosotros/Nosotras | amos | imos |
| Vosotros/Vosotras | asteis | isteis |
| Ustedes/Ellos/Ellas | aron | ieron |
| Vos (common pattern) | aste | iste |
Irregular preterite stems and the one ending set
Many high-frequency verbs change their stem in the preterite. The good news: most of them share one set of endings, so you’re not learning a full new chart each time.
That shared set is: -e, -iste, -o, -imos, -isteis, -ieron. There are no written accents in these forms.
How to build an irregular form
Use this three-step method:
- Pick the irregular stem: tener → tuv-.
- Add the shared ending: tuv- + e for yo.
- Say it out loud once: tuve. Sound helps memory.
Run the same steps with venir → vin-: vine, viniste, vino. The process stays the same.
Stem-change groups you’ll meet often
Here are common stems that show up in classes, reading, and conversation:
- tener → tuv- (tuve, tuviste)
- estar → estuv- (estuve, estuviste)
- andar → anduv- (anduve, anduviste)
- poner → pus- (puse, pusiste)
- poder → pud- (pude, pudiste)
- saber → sup- (supe, supiste)
- querer → quis- (quise, quisiste)
- venir → vin- (vine, viniste)
J-stem verbs
Some verbs end the stem with j and drop the i from -ieron, turning it into -eron. Two you’ll see a lot are decir and traer:
- decir → dij-: dije, dijiste, dijo, dijimos, dijisteis, dijeron
- traer → traj-: traje, trajiste, trajo, trajimos, trajisteis, trajeron
U-stem and I-stem verbs
A few verbs add a u or i into the stem in the third-person forms. You can spot them by their look:
- tener: tuvo, tuvieron
- venir: vino, vinieron
- hacer: hizo, hicieron
- querer: quiso, quisieron
If you write those four pairs a few times, your eye starts to expect the pattern.
Irregular stems table
| Verb | Preterite Stem | Sample (él/ella) |
|---|---|---|
| tener | tuv- | tuvo |
| estar | estuv- | estuvo |
| andar | anduv- | anduvo |
| poner | pus- | puso |
| poder | pud- | pudo |
| saber | sup- | supo |
| querer | quis- | quiso |
| venir | vin- | vino |
| decir | dij- | dijo |
| traer | traj- | trajo |
| hacer | hic-/hiz- | hizo |
| conducir | conduj- | condujo |
Spelling changes that keep the sound
Some verbs change spelling in the yo form so the pronunciation stays steady. These changes show up with -car, -gar, and -zar verbs.
-car, -gar, -zar in the yo form
- buscar → busqué (c → qu)
- llegar → llegué (g → gu)
- empezar → empecé (z → c)
All other persons stay regular: buscaste, buscó, buscamos… The only change is there to protect the sound.
Y in third person with vowel-ending stems
Some -er and -ir verbs end in a vowel before -er or -ir. In the third-person forms, i turns into y:
- leer → leyó, leyeron
- oír → oyó, oyeron
- caer → cayó, cayeron
All other persons keep i: leí, leíste, leímos; oí, oíste, oímos.
Stem changes in -ir verbs only
Some -ir verbs change the stem in third person forms (él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes). The change happens in the vowel that carries stress in the present tense.
Common patterns
- e → i: pedir → pidió, pidieron
- o → u: dormir → durmió, durmieron
Notice that nosotros and vosotros stay regular: pedimos, dormimos.
Three high-frequency verbs to learn as whole forms
Three verbs show up all the time, so it pays to learn their preterite forms early: ser/ir, hacer, and ver.
Ser and ir share one set
- fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fuisteis, fueron
The form tells you “I went” or “I was.” Your sentence gives the meaning.
Hacer and ver
- hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis, hicieron
- vi, viste, vio, vimos, visteis, vieron
Mistakes that keep showing up
Most errors come from mixing patterns. Fix them once and your writing gets cleaner soon.
- Mixing -ar and -er/-ir tops: write a mini-drill with only yo and él forms: hablé/habló, comí/comió.
- Missing accents in regular forms: check é and ó in -ar, plus í and ió in -er/-ir.
- Using -ieron with j-stems: say “dijeron, trajeron” out loud; the missing i matches the spelling.
- Confusing ser and ir: add a place word for “go” (a casa, al cine) and an identity word for “be” (profesor, cansado).
A 10-minute practice routine that works
If you practice in small bursts, you’ll keep accuracy while building speed.
Minute 1–3: Ending swap
Pick one verb and run through all persons without pausing. Then switch to another verb type.
- hablar → hablé, hablaste, habló, hablamos, hablasteis, hablaron
- comer → comí, comiste, comió, comimos, comisteis, comieron
Minute 4–7: Sentence chain
Write five short sentences about a finished day. Change the subject each time. Keep the time word in place so your brain links preterite to completed time.
Minute 8–10: Irregular grab bag
Take four irregular stems from the table and write one sentence each. Use the shared endings to build the full form.
A one-page study sheet
Copy this section into your notes, or print it. It keeps the main patterns in one place.
Regular endings
- -ar: é, aste, ó, amos, asteis, aron
- -er/-ir: í, iste, ió, imos, isteis, ieron
Irregular stem endings
- Shared set: e, iste, o, imos, isteis, ieron
- J-stem third plural: -eron
Sound-keeping spelling in yo
- -car → -qué
- -gar → -gué
- -zar → -cé
Short writing prompts
Pick one prompt and write four sentences in the preterite, then read them aloud. Use a time word in every sentence so your reader can feel the finished time right away.
- Last weekend: where you went, what you ate, who you saw.
- A study day: what you reviewed, what you forgot, what you learned.
- A surprise: what happened, how you reacted, what you did next.
Afterward, circle each verb and label it -ar or -er/-ir. That tiny label helps the endings stay straight.