Regular Spanish Preterite Verbs for Completed Events
Regular Spanish Preterite Verbs for Completed Events
In this lesson, you will learn the regular Spanish preterite endings for -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs. Use the preterite for completed events in a finished past time such as — yesterday or — last weekend.
Regular -AR verbs
Use these endings with a regular -AR verb such as trabajar — to work.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| I worked | ||
| you worked | ||
| / / | he / she worked; you worked | |
| / | we worked | |
| / | you all worked | |
| / / | they / you all worked |
Regular -ER verbs
Use these endings with a regular -ER verb — to eat.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| I ate | ||
| you ate | ||
| / / | he / she ate; you ate | |
| / | we ate | |
| / | you all ate | |
| / / | they / you all ate |
Regular -IR verbs
Regular -IR verbs use the same preterite endings as regular -ER verbs. Use — to write as a model.
| Subject | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| I wrote | ||
| you wrote | ||
| / / | he / she wrote; you wrote | |
| / | we wrote | |
| / | you all wrote | |
| / / | they / you all wrote |
The regular preterite endings
| Subject | -AR | -ER / -IR |
|---|---|---|
| -é | -í | |
| -aste | -iste | |
| / / | -ó | -ió |
| / | -amos | -imos |
| / | -asteis | -isteis |
| / / | -aron | -ieron |
Use the preterite for a completed event
- — Yesterday I worked at home.
- — Last night we ate in a restaurant.
- — On Saturday they wrote three messages.
The time frame is finished, and the action is presented as completed.
Build a sequence of completed actions
You can place several completed events in order.
— Yesterday I worked in the morning, ate at two, and studied Spanish in the afternoon.
Another example:
— First we studied, afterward we ate, and then we spoke with Ana.
Stress and written accents matter
Compare the present and preterite forms:
- — I speak
- — he / she spoke
- — I work
- — he / she worked
The written accent in and marks both spelling and pronunciation. Do not treat it as optional.
A form can be identical across present and preterite
Some forms look the same in the present and preterite.
- — We speak Spanish every day.
- — Yesterday we spoke Spanish.
The time expression and context tell you whether hablamos refers to the present or a completed past event.
Do not conjugate from the nearest noun automatically
First identify the actual subject.
— Ana and Carlos worked yesterday.
Ana y Carlos is plural, — they worked is required.
— The teacher spoke with the students.
El profesor is the subject, so habló — he spoke is singular even though los estudiantes is plural.
Questions about completed events
- — Did you work yesterday?
- — Did they eat at home?
- — Did you write the message?
Short conversation
Person A: — Did you work yesterday?
Person B: — Yes, I worked in the morning.
Person A: — Did you study in the afternoon?
Person B: — Yes, I studied Spanish.
A practical conjugation method
- Confirm that the event is completed in a finished past time.
- Identify the infinitive ending: -AR, -ER, or -IR.
- Identify the subject.
- Remove the infinitive ending and add the matching preterite ending.
- Preserve required written accents in forms such as , , , and .
- Use time expressions and context to interpret identical-looking forms such as hablamos.
From Regular Preterites to Following Event Order
You can now conjugate regular -AR, -ER, and -IR verbs in the preterite and use them to narrate completed events. The next lesson focuses on following the order of events in short Spanish past-tense accounts.