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¿Participaste en ese desfile?

¿Participaste en ese desfile?
Did you participate in that parade?
From Lesson 129:Preterite of regular -ar verbs·Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about ¿Participaste en ese desfile?

How does the ending of participaste show that it's in the past tense?
The verb participar (to participate) is a regular -ar verb. To talk about a completed action in the past (using the preterite tense), we drop the -ar and add -aste for the tú (informal 'you') form. This is why participaste translates to 'you participated' or 'did you participate'.
Why isn't the word tú (you) in this sentence?
In Spanish, the verb ending usually gives away who is doing the action. Because the -aste ending is only ever used for the tú form in this past tense, adding the word tú isn't necessary unless you really want to add emphasis.
Why is it ese desfile and not eso desfile?
The word desfile (parade) is a masculine noun. When you want to say 'that' directly in front of a masculine singular noun, you must use ese. The word eso is a neutral word used for abstract ideas or unnamed situations, and it is never placed directly before a noun.
Is en always the preposition used with participar?
Yes, when you want to say you participate 'in' an event or activity, Spanish uses the verb phrase participar en. Luckily, this matches up perfectly with how we use 'participate in' in English!

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