Pagamos por ello ayer.

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Breakdown of Pagamos por ello ayer.

• ayer: yesterday
• pagar: to pay
• ello: it (after a preposition)

Questions & Answers about Pagamos por ello ayer.

Why is there no word for we in the sentence?

Spanish often drops subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows who the subject is.

• Pagamos = we pay or we paid
• So nosotros is not necessary

You could say Nosotros pagamos por ello ayer, but that would usually add emphasis, contrast, or clarity. In neutral speech, just Pagamos... is normal.

Does pagamos mean we pay or we paid?

It can mean either, because the nosotros form of:

• the present: pagamos = we pay
• the preterite: pagamos = we paid

The word ayer makes it clear that this sentence is about the past, so here pagamos means we paid.

Why is pagamos used instead of hemos pagado?

In Spanish from Spain, the present perfect (hemos pagado) is very common for recent past actions connected to today.

But with a finished time expression like ayer, Spanish from Spain normally uses the preterite:

• Ayer pagamos... = natural
• Ayer hemos pagado... = generally not standard in most of Spain

So pagamos is exactly what you would expect here.

Why is it and not ?