⏳ Past Tense - Pasado
Beginner Spanish · Preterite
The Spanish Preterite
The preterite helps you talk about actions and events that were completed in the past. It is especially useful when you say what happened yesterday, last weekend, at a specific time, or as part of a finished sequence.
Your next small win: recognize when the preterite fits, use common past-time expressions, form basic regular preterite verbs, and talk about a few completed things you did.
Think completed and finished
When to Use the Preterite
Completed actions
I finished my homework.
We bought a car.
Actions at a specific past time
I arrived at eight.
We went out on Saturday.
Finished events
We visited the museum.
She won the game.
A sequence of completed actions
I woke up, ate breakfast, and left home.
Main idea: the preterite presents these actions as completed events in the past.
Say two completed actions
Say that you finished your homework and arrived at eight.
Terminé mi tarea.
Llegué a las ocho.
Build regular past forms
Regular Preterite Endings
Regular verbs use one set of endings for -ar verbs and another shared set for -er and -ir verbs.
Regular -AR endings
hablé
hablaste
habló
hablamos
hablaron
Regular -ER and -IR endings
comí / salí
comiste / saliste
comió / salió
comimos / salimos
comieron / salieron
Watch the accent marks: regular first-person and third-person singular forms such as hablé, habló, comí, and comió need their written accents.
I bought a gift for my sister.
We finished the project yesterday.
They arrived early.
I wrote an email this morning.
Build three past forms
Give the preterite forms for yo estudiar, tú comer, and ellos llegar.
yo estudié
tú comiste
ellos llegaron
Place the action in the past
Common Past-Time Expressions
yesterday
last night
last week
last year
two days ago
Yesterday I studied Spanish.
I ate pizza last night.
Last year I went to Spain.
Common irregular preterite forms
I went / I was
I had
I did / I made
I said / I told
These forms do not follow the regular endings above. For now, treat them as useful high-frequency forms to recognize and remember.
Add a past-time expression
Say that you studied Spanish yesterday and ate pizza last night.
Ayer estudié español.
Comí pizza anoche.
Ask and answer about finished events
Talking About What Happened
What did you do yesterday?
Where did you go?
Who did you speak with?
When did you arrive?
Weekend activities
What did you do over the weekend?
I went to the beach and had dinner with my family.
Did you have a good time?
Yes, it was an excellent weekend.
Tell a short past sequence
Say that you woke up, ate breakfast, and left home.
Me desperté, desayuné y salí de casa.
Your turn · 8 quick questions
Practice: The Preterite
Choose the answer that best fits. Focus on completed past actions, regular endings, past-time expressions, sequences, and a few common irregular forms.
Practice complete
You can talk about common completed events in the past.
A few preterite patterns to revisit
One last step: tell what you did yesterday without choices.
Write four short sentences about yesterday: where you went, one thing you ate, one person you spoke with, and one thing you finished.
Ayer fui al trabajo.
Comí pizza.
Hablé con mi hermana.
Terminé mi tarea.
Which situation clearly fits the preterite?
- A completed action that happened yesterday.
- A habit that happens every morning.
- A general truth about nature.
- An action described as a regular routine.
The preterite is used here for a completed action located in the past.
Completed past action → preterite
You arrived at eight. Which sentence fits?
- Llegué a las ocho.
- Llego a las ocho.
- Llegamos a las ocho.
- Llegaron a las ocho.
Llegué is the first-person singular preterite form used for this completed arrival.
Llegué a las ocho.
You ate pizza last night. Which sentence fits?
- Comí pizza anoche.
- Como pizza anoche.
- Comiste pizza anoche.
- Comimos pizza anoche.
Comí is the yo preterite form of comer, and anoche means “last night.”
Comí pizza anoche.
Which ending does a regular -ar verb use with yo in the preterite?
- -é
- -aste
- -ó
- -aron
Regular -ar verbs use -é with yo, as in hablé and estudié.
yo + regular -ar → -é
They arrived early. Which sentence has the correct form of llegar?
- Ellos llegaron temprano.
- Ellos llegamos temprano.
- Ellos llegaste temprano.
- Ellos llegó temprano.
Regular -ar verbs use -aron with ellos and ustedes in the preterite.
ellos llegaron
Which sentence presents a sequence of completed actions?
- Me desperté, desayuné y salí de casa.
- Me despierto, desayuno y salgo de casa.
- Desayuno antes de trabajar.
- Normalmente salgo de casa temprano.
The three verbs present a completed sequence of events in the past.
Me desperté, desayuné y salí de casa.
Last year you went to Spain. Which sentence fits?
- El año pasado fui a España.
- El año pasado voy a España.
- El año pasado estudio en España.
- El año pasado vivo en España.
Fui is the irregular preterite form used here for a completed trip.
El año pasado fui a España.
Someone asks, “¿Qué hiciste el fin de semana?” Which answer describes two completed weekend actions?
- Fui a la playa y cené con mi familia.
- Voy a la playa y ceno con mi familia.
- Voy a la playa todos los fines de semana.
- Normalmente ceno con mi familia.
Fui and cené both describe completed actions during the finished weekend.
Fui a la playa y cené con mi familia.