Preterite (Indefinido) in Spanish

Overview

The preterite tense, known as pretérito indefinido in Spanish, is your main tool for talking about completed actions in the past. It is the tense you use to narrate events that happened at a specific time and are now finished -- yesterday's dinner, last summer's vacation, the moment you met someone. At the CEFR A2 level, the preterite opens up an entirely new dimension of communication: the ability to tell stories about your past.

The preterite has distinct conjugation patterns for -ar, -er, and -ir verbs, and unfortunately, many of the most common Spanish verbs are irregular in this tense. The good news is that regular preterite endings are highly consistent, and even the irregular forms follow recognizable patterns once you learn a few key verbs.

How It Works

Regular conjugations

Subject	-AR (hablar)	-ER (comer)	-IR (vivir)
yo	hablé	comí	viví
tú	hablaste	comiste	viviste
él/ella/usted	habló	comió	vivió
nosotros/as	hablamos	comimos	vivimos
vosotros/as	hablasteis	comisteis	vivisteis
ellos/ellas/ustedes	hablaron	comieron	vivieron

Notice that -er and -ir verbs share the same preterite endings.

Key features

Feature	Detail
Accent marks	First and third person singular always carry accents: hablé, habló, comí, comió
Nosotros form	For -ar and -ir verbs, the nosotros form is identical to the present tense (hablamos, vivimos). Context tells you which tense is meant.
Time markers	ayer (yesterday), anoche (last night), la semana pasada (last week), el año pasado (last year), en 2020

Spelling changes in regular verbs

Some verbs have spelling changes in the yo form to preserve pronunciation:

Verb ending	Change	Example
-car	c → qu	buscar → busqué
-gar	g → gu	llegar → llegué
-zar	z → c	empezar → empecé

When to use the preterite

Use it for...	Example
Completed actions at a specific time	Ayer comí pizza.
Sequential events	Me levanté, desayuné y salí.
Actions with a clear beginning/end	La película duró dos horas.
Sudden changes or interruptions	De repente, empezó a llover.

Examples in Context

Spanish	English	Note
Ayer comí pizza.	Yesterday I ate pizza.	specific time
Viajé a España el año pasado.	I traveled to Spain last year.	completed action
¿Qué hiciste ayer?	What did you do yesterday?	irregular hacer
Llegaron a las ocho.	They arrived at eight.	specific time
Hablamos con el profesor.	We spoke with the professor.	same as present form
Compré un libro nuevo.	I bought a new book.	completed action
Salí de casa a las siete.	I left home at seven.	specific time
Ella estudió toda la noche.	She studied all night.	completed action
No comiste nada.	You didn't eat anything.	negation
Vivieron en Barcelona tres años.	They lived in Barcelona for three years.	defined duration
Empecé a estudiar español.	I started studying Spanish.	spelling change z→c
Llegué tarde al trabajo.	I arrived late to work.	spelling change g→gu

Common Mistakes

Forgetting accent marks

• Wrong: Yo hable con ella.
• Right: Yo hablé con ella.
• Why: Without the accent, hable is the subjunctive form. The accent on hablé marks it as preterite first person. Similarly, habló (he spoke) vs. hablo (I speak).

Confusing the nosotros form with present tense

• Wrong: Thinking hablamos is always present tense.
• Right: Hablamos ayer. (We spoke yesterday.) = preterite; Hablamos ahora. (We speak now.) = present.
• Why: For -ar and -ir verbs, the nosotros preterite and present forms are identical. Use time markers and context to distinguish them.

Using the preterite for ongoing past actions

• Wrong: Cuando era niño, jugué en el parque todos los días.
• Right: Cuando era niño, jugaba en el parque todos los días.
• Why: Habitual or ongoing actions in the past require the imperfect tense, not the preterite. The preterite is for completed, one-time events.

Forgetting spelling changes

• Wrong: Yo llegé tarde.
• Right: Yo llegué tarde.
• Why: Verbs ending in -gar change g to gu in the yo form to preserve the hard "g" sound.

Usage Notes

The preterite is used throughout the Spanish-speaking world, but its relationship with the present perfect varies by region. In most of Latin America, the preterite is strongly preferred for recent past events (Hoy comí pizza), while in Spain, the present perfect is more common for recent actions (Hoy he comido pizza). Both are understood everywhere.

Practice Tips

• Tell your day as a story. At the end of each day, narrate what you did using the preterite: Me levanté a las siete. Desayuné café con tostadas. Salí de casa a las ocho. This daily exercise builds fluency with the most common regular and irregular forms.

• Learn the spelling-change verbs as a group. Make flashcards for busqué, llegué, empecé and other -car/-gar/-zar verbs. Practicing them together helps you remember the pattern rather than each verb individually.

• Pair with time markers. Always practice preterite verbs with a time expression: ayer, anoche, la semana pasada. This reinforces when to use the tense and makes your sentences more complete.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Regular -AR Verbs -- Master present tense conjugation before tackling the past
• Next steps: Irregular Preterites -- Learn the most common irregular forms
• Next steps: Imperfect Tense -- The other main past tense for descriptions and habits
• Next steps: Reflexive Verbs in Past -- Apply preterite to reflexive verbs
• Next steps: Present Perfect -- A compound past tense for actions with present relevance