When you want to talk about actions that are completely finished—like what you did after school yesterday or last night—use the preterite tense.
Conjugating regular -ar verbs
To form the preterite of a regular -ar verb, drop the -ar ending and add these new endings:
| Subject | Preterite Ending | Example (patinar) |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -é | patiné |
| tú | -aste | patinaste |
| él, ella, usted | -ó | patinó |
| nosotros/as | -amos | patinamos |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | -aron | patinaron |
Pay special attention to the accent marks on the yo and él/ella/usted forms. They are crucial for showing that the action happened in the past!
| Yesterday I skated in the park. | Ayer patiné en el parque. |
| She sang in the choir yesterday. | Ella cantó en el coro ayer. |
| Last night you conversed with the teacher. | Anoche conversaste con el profesor. |
| My friends skated in the street yesterday. | Mis amigos patinaron en la calle ayer. |
The "nosotros" form
For regular -ar verbs, the nosotros ending is exactly the same in the preterite (-amos) as it is in the present tense. Context clues like ayer (yesterday) or anoche (last night) will tell you which tense is being used.
| Yesterday we organized a new club. | Ayer organizamos un club nuevo. |
| We enjoyed the movie last night. | Disfrutamos la película anoche. |
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