VIA: Lesson - Conjugation: Pretérito indefinido (regular verbs)

Conjugation: Pretérito indefinido (regular verbs)

Now that we've learned about when to use the preterit in Spanish, let's explore how to form it. Remember that we call verb formation "conjugation" - in which we take a verb and add endings based on the subject pronoun.

Conjugating regular verbs in pretérito indefinido in Spanish

Conjugating regular verbs in Spanish in the pretérito indefinido is quite easy as long as you follow this simple formula:

  • First, you remove the -AR, -ER or -IR endings from the verbs to find the root of the verb;
    • viajar - ar = viaj-
    • comer - er = com-
    • salir - ir = sal-
  • Once you have the root of the verb, simply add the specific suffixes for each of the pronouns (AR / ER / IR):
    • yo = é / í / í
    • tú = aste / iste / iste
    • él/ella/usted = ó / ió / ió
    • nosotros/nosostras = amos / imos / imos
    • vosotros/vosostras = asteis / isteis / isteis
    • ellos/ellas/ustedes = aron / ieron / ieron

Take note that for both -ER and -IR verbs, the suffixes are the same!

Conjugation Examples

Just looking at the suffixes by themselves might be a little confusing, so let's take a look at what each type of verb looks like conjugated. We'll be using the example verbs from above: viajar, comer, and salir.

Regular Verbs Conjugated in the Preterit - Examples
Pronoun AR: Viajar (to travel) ER: Comer (to eat) IR: Salir (to go out)
yo viajé comí salí
tú viajaste comiste saliste
él/ella/usted viajó comió salió
nosotros/nosotras viajamos comimos salimos
vosotros/vosotras viajasteis comisteis salisteis
ellos/ellas/ustedes viajaron comieron salieron

Video Lesson

A notebook and pen with ¡Toma apuntes! written on it.

This video lesson will help you understand how to conjugate el pretérito – preterit tense conjugation for regular verbs. You may want to watch it twice! You will need tu cuaderno (your notebook) and tu lápiz or bolígrafo (your pencil or your pen) Necesitas tomar apuntes (take notes) and complete practice activities. Remember, email your teacher if you have any questions after you complete a lesson. Your instructor is always available to help you and clarify any additional questions you may have before you move forward with your studies.

Video credit: Maestro Kaplan

A stick note with La actividad de práctica written on it.

Practice Activities

Can you think of two things you did last weekend and say it in Spanish? For example: Yo comí una manzana. Yo hablé con mi amiga Aly. Do you understand how to conjugate regular verbs in the preterit tense in Spanish? If your answer was sí to all questions, then you are ready to complete the following practice activities.

Take time to practice. All practice activities have unlimited attempts. Practice as many times as you need. When you complete practice activities, you are reviewing the lessons and preparing yourself to move forward in the course!

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