The simple past tense: conjugation of Spanish regular verbs
Spanish
Learn the simple past in Spanish. Learn how to conjugate and when to use this tense. This page covers the regular verbs.
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What is the simple past tense?
The simple past is used for specific actions that were completed at a specific point in the past.
- Ayer caminé por el parque. (Yesterday I walked through the park.)
- Ella vendió su casa el año pasado. (She sold her house last year.)
- Ellos escribieron una carta. (They wrote a letter.)
It is useful to show when something happened and that it's not continuing into the present.
Él vendió su casa el año pasado. (He sold his house last year.)an action that happened in the past.
Conjugation of regular Spanish verbs in the simple past
We will learn how to conjugate regular verbs in the simple past tense in Spanish.
Verbs ending in "-ar": conjugation of "caminar" (to walk)
In the simple past tense, regular verbs ending in "-ar" are formed by replacing the "-ar" ending with specific suffixes (-é, -aste, -ó, -amos, -asteis, -aron) to match different subjects.
| Personal pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo (I) | Yo caminé ayer por el parque. | I walked in the park yesterday. |
| Tú (You) | Tú caminaste durante dos horas. | You walked for two hours. |
| Ella/Él (He/She/It) | Ella caminó hasta la tienda y compró todo. | She walked to the store and bought everything. |
| Nosotros/-as (We) | Nosotros caminamos por la playa al atardecer. | We walked on the beach at sunset. |
| Vosotros/-as (You) | Vosotras caminasteis hasta la montaña más alta. | You walked to the highest mountain. |
| Ellos/-as (They) | Ellos caminaron juntos hasta el final del sendero. | They walked together to the end of the trail. |
These are the suffixes for regular verbs ending in "-ar" -é/-aste/-ó/-amos/-asteis/-aron.
Listening exercise
This dialogue shows the conjugation of "-ar" verbs in the simple past tense.
| Spanish | English | |
|---|---|---|
| María | ¿Caminaste por el centro ayer? | Did you walk downtown yesterday? |
| Daniel | Sí, caminé por allí. Vi algunas tiendas interesantes. | Yes, I walked around there. I saw some interesting shops. |
| María | ¿Tus amigos caminaron contigo? | Did your friends walk with you? |
| Daniel | No, ellos no caminaron conmigo. Yo fui solo. | No, they didn't walk with me. I went alone. |
Verbs ending in "-er": conjugation of "vender" (to sell)
Regular verbs ending in "-er" are conjugated in the simple past tense by replacing the "-er" ending with -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, or -ieron, depending on the subject.
| Personal pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo (I) | Yo vendí mi bicicleta vieja. | I sold my old bicycle. |
| Tú (You) | Tú vendiste tu libro usado. | You sold your used book. |
| Él/Ella (He/She/It) | Él vendió su casa el año pasado. | He sold his house last year. |
| Nosotros/-as (We) | Nosotras vendimos todas las galletas. | We sold all the cookies. |
| Vosotros/-as (You) | Vosotros vendisteis vuestras pinturas. | You all sold your paintings. |
| Ellos/-as (They) | Ellas vendieron sus coches antiguos. | They sold their old cars. |
These are the suffixes for regular verbs ending in "-er" -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, or -ieron.
Listening exercise
Here, the simple past conjugation of "-er" verbs is practised in a dialogue.
| Spanish | English | |
|---|---|---|
| María | ¿Vendiste algo interesante esta semana? | Did you sell anything interesting this week? |
| Daniel | Sí, vendí mis cuadros en la feria de arte. | Yes, I sold my paintings at the art fair. |
| María | ¿Vendió tu hermana también sus joyas? | Did your sister also sell her jewellery? |
| Daniel | No, ella no vendió nada esta vez. | No, she didn't sell anything this time. |
Verbs ending in "-ir": conjugation of "escribir" (to write)
When expressing actions in the simple past tense, regular Spanish verbs ending in "-ir" are modified by replacing the "-ir" ending with the suffixes -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, or -ieron.
| Personal pronoun | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|
| Yo (I) | Yo escribí una carta a mi abuela. | I wrote a letter to my grandmother. |
| Tú (You) | Tú escribiste una historia muy interesante. | You wrote a very interesting story. |
| Él/Ella (He/She/It) | Él escribió un poema para su novia. | He wrote a poem for his girlfriend. |
| Nosotros/-as (We) | Nosotras escribimos un diario de viaje. | We wrote a travel diary. |
| Vosotros/-as (You) | Vosotros escribisteis una canción. | You wrote a song. |
| Ellas/-os (They) | Ellas escribieron un mensaje en la pizarra. | They wrote a message on the board. |
These are the suffixes for regular verbs ending in "-ir" -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, or -ieron.
Listening exercise
This dialogue demonstrates the simple past conjugation of verbs ending in "-ir".
| Spanish | English | |
|---|---|---|
| María | ¿Escribiste en tu diario ayer? | Did you write in your diary yesterday? |
| Daniel | Sí, escribí sobre el día en el parque. | Yes, I wrote about the day at the park. |
| María | ¿Escribió tu hermana una carta a su amigo? | Did your sister write a letter to her friend? |
| Daniel | No, ella no escribió ninguna carta esta semana. | No, she didn't write any letter this week. |
Key takeaways
Here is a quick summary of this lesson.
- The simple past is used for specific actions that were completed at a specific point in the past.
- Verbs ending in "-ar" have the following endings: -é/-aste/-ó/-amos/-asteis/-aron.
- Verbs ending in "-er" and "-ir" have the following endings: -í/-iste/-ió/-imos/-isteis/-ieron.
Important! Practise this lesson with a teacher.
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