Grammar – Preterite (el pretérito indefinido)
The following table shows the preterite of regular verbs. Regular -er and -ir verbs follow the exact same pattern. Note that the nosotros form is the same as in the present tense for -ar and -ir verbs, so you have to know the context to figure out the time. Also, note that the last letter of comí and viví has an accent mark.
| hablar (-ar) | to talk | comer (-er) | to eat | vivir (-ir) | to live |
|---|
| yo | hablé | I talked | comí | I ate | viví | I lived |
| tú | hablaste | you talked | comiste | you ate | viviste | you lived |
| Ud./él/ella | habló | he/she talked | comió | he/she ate | vivió | he/she lived |
| nosotros/as | hablamos | we talked | comimos | we ate | vivimos | we lived |
| vosotros/as | hablastéis | you (all) talked | comistéis | you (all) ate | vivistéis | you (all) lived |
| Uds./ellos/as | hablaron | they talked | comieron | they ate | vivieron | they lived |
Here is a list of common verbs that have an irregular preterite:
| dar | decir | estar | hacer |
|---|
| yo | di | dije | estuve | hice |
| tú | diste | dijiste | estuviste | hiciste |
| Ud./él/ella | dio | dijo | estuvo | hizo |
| nosotros/as | dimos | dijimos | estuvimos | hicimos |
| vosotros/as | disteis | dijisteis | estuvisteis | hicisteis |
| Uds./ellos/as | dieron | dijeron | estuvieron | hicieron |
| ir | poder | poner | querer |
|---|
| yo | fui | pude | puse | quise |
| tú | fuiste | pudiste | pusiste | quisiste |
| Ud./él/ella | fue | pudo | puso | quiso |
| nosotros/as | fuimos | pudimos | pusimos | quisimos |
| vosotros/as | fuisteis | pudisteis | pusisteis | quisisteis |
| Uds./ellos/as | fueron | pudieron | pusieron | quisieron |
| saber | ser | tener | venir |
|---|
| yo | supe | fui | tuve | vine |
| tú | supiste | fuiste | tuviste | viniste |
| Ud./él/ella | supo | fue | tuvo | vino |
| nosotros/as | supimos | fuimos | tuvimos | vinimos |
| vosotros/as | supisteis | fuisteis | tuvisteis | vinisteis |
| Uds./ellos/as | supieron | fueron | tuvieron | vinieron |
Grammar – Imperfect (el pretérito imperfecto)
The following table shows the imperfect of regular verbs. Note that regular -er and -ir verbs follow the exact same pattern:
| hablar
(-ar) | to talk | comer
(-er) | to eat | vivir
(-ir) | to live |
|---|
| yo | hablaba | I was talking | comía | I was eating | vivía | I was living |
| tú | hablabas | you were talking | comías | you were eating | vivías | you were living |
| Ud./él/ella | hablaba | he/she was talking | comía | he/she was eating | vivía | he/she was living |
| nosotros/as | hablábamos | we were talking | comíamos | we were eating | vivíamos | we were living |
| vosotros/as | hablabais | you (all) were talking | comíais | you (all) were eating | vivíais | you (all) were living |
| Uds./ellos/as | hablaban | they were talking | comían | they were eating | vivían | they were living |
There are only three verbs that are irregular in the imperfect:
| ir | ser | ver |
|---|
| yo | iba | era | veía |
| tú | ibas | eras | veías |
| Ud./él/ella | iba | era | veía |
| nosotros/as | íbamos | éramos | veíamos |
| vosotros/as | ibais | erais | veíais |
| Uds./ellos/as | iban | eran | veían |
Grammar – Preterite vs. Imperfect
Spanish has two tenses that correspond to the English simple past. Roughly speaking, the Preterite is used to tell What happened – it refers to a specific event.
| Preterite is used for… | Example |
| A specific event | Ayer comí una hamburguesa. |
| Beginning/end of an event | La fiesta terminó a las tres de la mañana. |
| A series of events | Carlos salió de la universidad, compró ropa y volvió a casa. |
| Preterite | Key words |
|---|
| esta mañana | this morning |
| anoche | last night |
| ayer | yesterday |
| el otro día | the other day |
| el lunes pasado | last Monday |
| la semana pasada | last week |
| el mes pasado | last month |
| el año pasado | last year |
| hace dos años | two years ago |
| en ese momento | at that moment |
| entonces | then |
The Imperfect is used to tell How things were – it refers to the general situation.
| Imperfect is used for… | Example |
| Habitual events | A veces Einstein se equivocaba. |
| Time in the past | Eran las dos de la tarde. |
| Conditions (physical or mental) | Era un día muy caluroso. |
| Imperfect | Key words |
|---|
| siempre | always |
| generalmente | usually |
| a menudo | often |
| muchas veces | many times |
| a veces | sometimes |
| nunca | never |
| todos los días | every day |
| cada día |
| cada año | every year |
El vocabulario (Vocabulary) – La casa (The house)
| La casa | The house |
|---|
| la habitación / el cuarto / la pieza / la sala / la recámara | the room |
| el dormitorio / el cuarto / la pieza | the bedroom |
| el estar / la sala de estar / el cuarto de estar | the living room |
| el comedor | the dining room |
| la cocina | the kitchen |
| el baño / el cuarto de baño / el servicio / el excusado | the bathroom |
| la(s) escalera(s) | the stairs |
| el sótano / el subsuelo | the basement |
| el techo / el tejado | the roof |
| el techo / el cielo raso | the ceiling |
| el piso / el suelo | the floor |
| la pared | the wall |
| el muro | the wall |
| la ventana | the window |
| el ropero / el armario / el clóset | the closet |
| la mesa | the table |
| la silla | the chair |
| el espejo | the mirror |
| el lavabo / el lavamanos / el lavatorio | the bathroom sink, the lavatory |
| En la cocina… | In the kitchen… |
|---|
| la nevera / el frigorífico / el refrigerador / la heladera | the refrigerator |
| el lavaplatos / el lavavajilla | the dishwasher |
| el fregadero / la pileta | the kitchen sink |
| la cocina | the stove, the cooker |
| el horno | the oven |
| el (horno) microondas | the microwave |
| la olla | the pot |
| la sartén | the (frying) pan |
| En el comedor… | In the dining room… |
|---|
| el plato | the plate |
| la taza | the cup |
| el tazón / el bol | the bowl |
| el vaso | the glass |
| la copa | the goblet, the wineglass |
| el tenedor | the fork |
| el cuchillo | the knife |
| la cuchara | the spoon |
| la servilleta | the napkin |