Corté un esqueje ayer.

Corté is the preterite (also called pretérito indefinido), which is used for a completed action at a specific time in the past.

Since the sentence includes ayer (yesterday), it points to a finished event, so corté fits naturally:

• Corté un esqueje ayer = I cut a cutting yesterday.

Cortaba is the imperfect, which usually describes:

• repeated past actions,
• background information,
• actions in progress in the past.

So cortaba un esqueje would sound more like:

• I was cutting a cutting
• I used to cut cuttings depending on context.

The accent mark distinguishes corté (I cut) from corte (which could be a noun like cut, court, or a different verb form depending on context).

In regular -ar verbs in the preterite, the yo form ends in -é:

• hablar → hablé
• comprar → compré
• cortar → corté

So corté is the normal I form of cortar in the preterite.

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

• corté already means I cut

So:

• Corté un esqueje ayer = I cut a cutting yesterday

You can add yo for emphasis, contrast, or clarity:

• Yo corté un esqueje ayer, no Ana.
  I cut a cutting yesterday, not Ana.

But in a neutral sentence, leaving out yo is more natural.

Esqueje is a gardening word. It means a cutting: a piece cut from a plant so it can grow into a new one.

It is a fairly specific noun, so learners may not see it very often outside plant-related contexts.

Related words:

• planta = plant
• tallo = stem
• raíz = root
• maceta = flowerpot

So un esqueje is not just any cut piece; it is specifically a plant cutting.

Because esqueje is a masculine noun in Spanish:

• el esqueje
• un esqueje

So the article has to agree with the noun:

• Corté un esqueje ayer.

This gender is grammatical, so it does not necessarily match anything logical in English. It is simply something to learn with the noun:

• esqueje = masculine

Yes, ayer can move around.

All of these are possible:

• Corté un esqueje ayer.
• Ayer corté un esqueje.
• Corté ayer un esqueje. (less common in everyday speech)

The most natural options are usually:

• Corté un esqueje ayer
• Ayer corté un esqueje

Putting ayer first can give it a little more emphasis:

• Ayer corté un esqueje = Yesterday, I cut a cutting

Yes. Cortar is the standard verb for to cut.

In this gardening context, cortar un esqueje means to cut off a plant piece for propagation.

Depending on context, Spanish might also use other verbs, but cortar is completely normal and clear here.

Examples:

• Corté una rama. = I cut a branch.
• Cortó las flores. = He/She cut the flowers.
• Voy a cortar un esqueje. = I’m going to cut a cutting.

Normally, no. In Spanish, a singular countable noun usually needs an article or some determiner.

So:

• Corté un esqueje ayer = natural
• Corté esqueje ayer = not natural/incorrect in standard Spanish

Spanish generally wants:

• un esqueje
• el esqueje
• este esqueje
• mi esqueje

because esqueje is a singular thing being counted.

Normally, no. In standard Spanish, ayer usually goes with the preterite:

• Corté un esqueje ayer.

In many parts of Spain, the present perfect (he cortado) is common for recent past connected to the present, especially with expressions like:

• hoy = today
• esta mañana = this morning
• esta semana = this week

But with ayer, the usual choice is:

• corté, not he cortado

So for Spain-focused learning, this sentence is a very good example of normal usage.

In Spain, esqueje is pronounced approximately es-KE-he.

A few helpful points:

• es sounds like ess
• qu before e gives a k sound
• j in Spain is a strong throaty sound, not an English j

So:

• esqueje ≈ ess-KEH-kheh
  with the last consonant like the Spanish j sound in jamón

The stress is on the middle syllable:

• es-QUE-je

Yes. It is a fully complete sentence.

It has:

• an understood subject: (yo)
• a conjugated verb: corté
• a direct object: un esqueje
• a time expression: ayer

So even without yo, it is a normal, complete Spanish sentence.

It is a simple declarative sentence in the first person singular preterite.

Breakdown:

• Corté = verb, 1st person singular, preterite
• un esqueje = direct object
• ayer = adverb of time

So the structure is roughly:

[verb] + [object] + [time expression]

with the subject yo omitted because it is understood.