pretérito indefinido grammar in Spanish

Language: Spanish
Level: B1
Unit: Tiempos pasados
Practice types: 0

What this grammar point covers

The 'pretérito indefinido' is a Spanish past tense used to talk about actions that happened and were completed in the past.

When to use it

Use the 'pretérito indefinido' to describe actions that started and finished in the past, often with a clear time reference (like yesterday, last week, in 2010).

Key forms

For -ar verbs: hablé, hablaste, habló, hablamos, hablasteis, hablaron
For -er verbs: comí, comiste, comió, comimos, comisteis, comieron
For -ir verbs: viví, viviste, vivió, vivimos, vivisteis, vivieron

Examples

Ayer comí pizza.

English: Yesterday I ate pizza.

El año pasado viajamos a México.

English: Last year we traveled to Mexico.

Juan habló con su madre.

English: Juan spoke with his mother.

Vivieron en Madrid en 2015.

English: They lived in Madrid in 2015.

Tips

Remember: Use 'pretérito indefinido' only for actions that are finished and not repeated.
Pay attention to irregular verbs, as their stems and endings can change.
Time expressions like 'ayer', 'anoche', 'el mes pasado' often indicate this tense.

Exceptions and edge cases

Many common verbs are irregular in this tense, such as 'tener' (tuve), 'ser/ir' (fui), 'hacer' (hice).
Some verbs change spelling for pronunciation, like 'llegar' (llegué) or 'empezar' (empecé).