U-Stem Irregulars (Tener, Estar, Poder, Poner, Saber, Andar, Haber)

A large group of very common verbs forms the preterite with an irregular u-stem and a shared set of endings. Once you learn the pattern for one, the rest follow the same template.

The shared pattern

All u-stem irregulars use these endings, which are unstressed — notice there are no written accents on the yo and él/ella/usted forms, unlike regular verbs.

SubjectEnding
yo-e
tú-iste
él / ella / usted-o
nosotros-imos
ellos / ellas / ustedes-ieron
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There is no accent on tuve or tuvo, even though regular verbs like hablé and habló carry one. The stress falls on the stem, not the ending.

The u-stems

InfinitiveU-Stem
tenertuv-
estarestuv-
poderpud-
ponerpus-
sabersup-
andaranduv-
haberhub-
cabercup-

Tener (to have)

SubjectForm
yotuve
tútuviste
él / ella / ustedtuvo
nosotrostuvimos
ellos / ellas / ustedestuvieron

Ayer tuve una reunión muy larga.

Yesterday I had a very long meeting.

Estar (to be)

SubjectForm
yoestuve
túestuviste
él / ella / ustedestuvo
nosotrosestuvimos
ellos / ellas / ustedesestuvieron

Estuvimos en México la semana pasada.

We were in Mexico last week.

Poder (to be able)

SubjectForm
yopude
túpudiste
él / ella / ustedpudo
nosotrospudimos
ellos / ellas / ustedespudieron

No pude terminar la tarea anoche.

I couldn't finish the homework last night.

Poner (to put)

SubjectForm
yopuse
túpusiste
él / ella / ustedpuso
nosotrospusimos
ellos / ellas / ustedespusieron

Puse las llaves sobre la mesa.

I put the keys on the table.

Saber (to know)

SubjectForm
yosupe
túsupiste
él / ella / ustedsupo
nosotrossupimos
ellos / ellas / ustedessupieron

Supe la noticia esta mañana.

I found out the news this morning.

Andar (to walk / go around)

SubjectForm
yoanduve
túanduviste
él / ella / ustedanduvo
nosotrosanduvimos
ellos / ellas / ustedesanduvieron

Anduvimos por el centro toda la tarde.

We walked around downtown all afternoon.

💡
A common mistake is saying andé or andó as if andar were regular. The correct forms are anduve, anduviste, anduvo. Keep the full u-stem.

Haber (there was / there were)

In the preterite, haber is used impersonally as hubo, meaning there was or there were.

Hubo un accidente en la esquina.

There was an accident at the corner.

The verbs saber, poder, querer, and tener also shift meaning in the preterite — see Verbs That Change Meaning in the Preterite for the details.

Common mistakes

❌ Yo tuvé una reunión ayer.

Wrong: irregular preterites never carry accents on yo or él.

✅ Yo tuve una reunión ayer.

Correct: tuve — no accent, stress falls on the stem.

❌ Yo andé por el centro toda la tarde.

Wrong: andar uses the u-stem anduv-, not the regular pattern.

✅ Yo anduve por el centro toda la tarde.

Correct: anduve with the full u-stem.

❌ Ella pudó terminar a tiempo.

Wrong: irregular preterites use unaccented -o for él/ella.

✅ Ella pudo terminar a tiempo.

Correct: pudo — no accent on the irregular ending.

❌ Yo estuvé en México la semana pasada.

Wrong: the yo ending for u-stem irregulars is -e with no accent.

✅ Yo estuve en México la semana pasada.

Correct: estuve — unaccented.

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