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Spanish Verb Conjugation: Indicative Mood: Preterite Tense
Preterite Tense: Verbs with Irregular Stems

©RCAguilar

OBJECTIVE:
Get down on some really special cases, spending extra time and effort to get to know them very well.
TASK:
It's probably best to work with either one form at a time for these verbs, or with one specific verb all the way through its forms.
PERPLEXED?
You have good reason to be!
What's going on here?
Some verbs are just really weird. You have the same thing happening in English. How does is come from be?
Or went from go?
Look at your English spelling, too! Laughter rhymes with after, but not with slaughter.
So! You have some exceptionally odd verbs here! Deal with it! Challenge your mind and personality and willingness to learn! Develop some intellectual integrity here!
Most of these verbs are really important and stand out in their usage. You WILL use them ...
And nobody says you have to get 'em all down in one sitting on one day. You have the rest of your life to learn this stuff!

 
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VERB CONJUGATION
Indicative Mood
Present Tense
Regular -ar Verbs
Regular -er Verbs
Regular -ir Verbs
Stem e -> ie
Stem o -> ue
Stem e -> i
Stem iar: i -> í
Stem uar: u -> ú
Stem uir: i -> y
Stem ger/gir: g -> j
Yo form -oy
Yo form -zco
Yo form -go
Imperfect Tense
AR Verbs
ER & IR Verbs
Preterite Tense
Regular AR Verbs
Ending -car
Ending -gar
Ending -zar
ER/IR Verbs
ER/IR Verbs vowel Stem
IR Stem-changers
Irregular Stems
Future Tense
Regular Verbs
Irregular Stems
Conditional Tense
Regular Verbs
Irregular Stems
Progressive Tenses
Perfect Tenses

Reference
Subject Pronouns
yo
nosotros
nosotras
tú*
vosotros
vosotras
él
ella
Usted
ellos
ellas
Ustedes
*In some countries in Central & South America vos is used instead of .

Reflexive Pronouns
me nos
te os
se  se

Direct Object Pronouns
me nos
te os
lo
la
lo/la
los
las
los/las

Indirect Object Pronouns
me nos
te os
le les
Preterite Tense: Verbs with irregular preterite stems
 
These verbs have an irregular preterite stem.
The endings in the chart below are added to the stems given for each verb listed.
yo -e nosotros, nosotras -imos
-iste vosotros, vosotras -isteis
él, ella, Usted -o ellos, ellas, Ustedes -ieron
AR andar anduv- to be about, go walking herumsein
estar estuv- to be sein
ER haber hub- to have (auxiliary verb) haben (Hilfsverbum)
*
hacer hic- to do, make machen, tun
poder pud- to be able to, "can" können
*
poner pus- to put, place stellen
querer quis- to want, love wollen, lieben
saber sup- to know wissen
satisfacer satisfic- to satisfy befriedigen
*
tener tuv- to have haben
*
traer traj- to bring bringen
IR
*
decir dij- to say, tell sagen
*
-ducir -duj- -duct, -duce -duzieren
*
venir vin- to come kommen
Verbs marked with an * have a family of verbs which use the same endings as the root verb.
Don't forget to use correct preterite endings on stems ending in -j.
To see the preterite tense conjugated forms of these verbs, click on a pronoun below:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More Information About the Preterite Tense
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Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Yo form
To make this form, add -e to the stem provided for each verb.
AR This is the event. This is what I did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduve I was out & about I did go around
ich war beim ...
estar estuv- estuve I was (right then) being I did be
ich war
ER
haber hub- hube * I had (2nd verb)
ich hatte (ge_____)
hacer hic- hice I did I did do
ich habe getan
poder pud- pude I could, was able to I did be able
ich habe gekonnt
poner pus- puse I put, placed I did put
ich habe gestellt
querer quis- quise I wanted I did want
ich habe gewollt
saber sup- supe I found out, came to know I did find out
ich habe herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisfice I satisfied I did satisfy
ich habe befriedigt
tener tuv- tuve I had I did have
ich hatte
traer traj- traje I brought I did bring
ich habe gebracht
* haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
IR
decir dij- dije I said I did say
ich habe gesagt
-ducir -duj- -duje ** I -ducted, -duced I did -duct, -duce
ich habe -duziert
venir vin- vine I came I did come
ich bin gekommen
** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
The pronoun YO does not need to be stated in the preterite.
It is already clear by the ending that YO is doing the action.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
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Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
form
To make this form, add -iste to the stem provided for each verb.
AR This is the event. This is what you did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduviste you were out & about you did go around
du warst beim ...
estar estuv- estuviste you were (right then) being you did be
du warst
ER
haber hub- hubiste * you had (2nd verb)
du hattest (ge_____)
hacer hic- hiciste you did you did do
du hast getan
poder pud- pudiste you could, were able to you did be able
du hast gekonnt
poner pus- pusiste you put, placed you did put
du hast gestellt
querer quis- quisiste you wanted you did want
du hast gewollt
saber sup- supiste you found out, came to know you did find out
du hast herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisficiste you satisfied you did satisfy
du hast befriedigt
tener tuv- tuviste you had you did have
du hattest
traer traj- trajiste you brought you did bring
du hast gebracht
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
IR
decir dij- dijiste you said you did say
du hast gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujiste ** you -ducted, -duced you did -duct, -duce
du hast -duziert
venir vin- viniste you came you did come
du bist gekommen
** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
The pronoun does not need to be stated in the preterite.
It is already clear by the ending that is doing the action.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
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Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Él form
To make this form, add -o to the stem provided for each verb.
AR This is the event. This is what he did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvo he was out & about he did go around
er war beim ...
estar estuv- estuvo he was (right then) being he did be
er war
ER
haber hub- hubo* he had (2nd verb)
er hatte (ge_____)
hacer hic- hizo ** he did he did do
er hat getan
poder pud- pudo he could, was able to he did be able
er hat gekonnt
poner pus- puso he put, placed he did put
er hat gestellt
querer quis- quiso he wanted he did want
er hat gewollt
saber sup- supo he found out, came to know he did find out
er hat herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisfizo ** he satisfied he did satisfy
er hat befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvo he had he did have
er hatte
traer traj- trajo he brought he did bring
er hat gebracht
IR
decir dij- dijo he said he did say
er hat gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujo *** he -ducted, -duced he did -duct, -duce
er hat -duziert
venir vin- vino he came he did come
er ist gekommen
The pronoun ÉL needs to be stated in the preterite, because the same form is used for ELLA & USTED.
Once it is clear that ÉL is the subject, it can be left out in further statements.
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
** Don't forget to observe the spelling of the lisped Z sound: ZA - CE - CI - ZO - ZU.
*** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
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Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Ella form
To make this form, add -o to the stem provided for each verb.
AR This is the event. This is what she did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvo she was out & about she did go around
sie war beim ...
estar estuv- estuvo she was (right then) being she did be
sie war
ER
haber hub- hubo* she had (2nd verb)
sie hatte (ge_____)
hacer hic- hizo ** she did she did do
sie hat getan
poder pud- pudo she could, was able to she did be able
sie hat gekonnt
poner pus- puso she put, placed she did put
sie hat gestellt
querer quis- quiso she wanted she did want
sie hat gewollt
saber sup- supo she found out, came to know she did find out
sie hat herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisfizo ** she satisfied she did satisfy
sie hat befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvo she had she did have
sie hatte
traer traj- trajo she brought she did bring
sie hat gebracht
IR
decir dij- dijo she said she did say
sie hat gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujo *** she -ducted, -duced she did -duct, -duce
sie hat -duziert
venir vin- vino she came she did come
sie ist gekommen
The pronoun ELLA needs to be stated in the preterite, because the same form is used for ÉL & USTED.
Once it is clear that ELLA is the subject, it can be left out in further statements.
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
** Don't forget to observe the spelling of the lisped Z sound: ZA - CE - CI - ZO - ZU.
*** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
Back to Top
 
Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Usted form
To make this form, add -o to the stem provided for each verb.
AR
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvo you were out & about you did go around
Sie waren beim ...
estar estuv- estuvo you were (right then) being you did be
Sie waren
ER
haber hub- hubo* you had (2nd verb)
Sie hatten (ge_____)
hacer hic- hizo ** you did you did do
Sie haben getan
poder pud- pudo you could, were able to you did be able
Sie haben gekonnt
poner pus- puso you put, placed you did put
Sie haben gestellt
querer quis- quiso you wanted you did want
Sie haben gewollt
saber sup- supo you found out, came to know you did find out
Sie haben herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisfizo ** you satisfied you did satisfy
Sie haben befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvo you had you did have
Sie hatten
traer traj- trajo you brought you did bring
Sie haben gebracht
IR
decir dij- dijo you said you did say
Sie haben gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujo *** you -ducted, -duced you did -duct, -duce
Sie haben -duziert
venir vin- vino you came you did come
Sie sind gekommen
The pronoun USTED needs to be stated in the preterite, because the same form is used for ÉL & ELLA.
Once it is clear that USTED is the subject, it can be left out in further statements.
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
** Don't forget to observe the spelling of the lisped Z sound: ZA - CE - CI - ZO - ZU.
*** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
Back to Top
 
Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Nosotros & Nosotras form
To make this form, add -imos to the stem provided for each verb.
AR This is the event. This is what we did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvimos we were out & about we did go around
wir waren beim ...
estar estuv- estuvimos we were (at that moment) being we did be
wir waren
ER
haber hub- hubimos * we had (2nd verb)
wir hatten (ge_____)
hacer hic- hicimos we did we did do
wir haben getan
poder pud- pudimos we could, were able to we did be able
wir haben gekonnt
poner pus- pusimos we put, placed we did put
wir haben gestellt
querer quis- quisimos we wanted we did want
wir haben gewollt
saber sup- supimos we found out, came to know we did find out
wir haben herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisficimos we satisfied we did satisfy
wir haben befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvimos we had we did have
wir hatten
traer traj- trajimos we brought we did bring
wir haben gebracht
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
IR
decir dij- dijimos we said we did say
wir haben gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujimos ** we -ducted, -duced we did -duct, -duce
wir haben -duziert
venir vin- vinimos we came we did come
wir sind gekommen
** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
The pronoun NOSOTROS does not need to be stated in the preterite.
It is already clear by the ending that NOSOTROS is doing the action.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
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Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Vosotros & Vosotras form
To make this form, add -isteis to the stem provided for each verb.
AR This is the event. This is what y'all did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvisteis y'all were out & about y'all did go around
ihr ward beim ...
estar estuv- estuvisteis y'all were (at that moment) being y'all did be
ihr ward
ER
haber hub- hubisteis * y'all had (2nd verb)
ihr hattet (ge_____)
hacer hic- hicisteis y'all did y'all did do
ihr habt getan
poder pud- pudisteis y'all could, were able to y'all did be able
ihr habt gekonnt
poner pus- pusisteis y'all put, placed y'all did put
ihr habt gestellt
querer quis- quisisteis y'all wanted y'all did want
ihr habt gewollt
saber sup- supisteis y'all found out, came to know y'all did find out
ihr habt herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisficisteis y'all satisfied y'all did satisfy
ihr habt befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvisteis y'all had y'all did have
ihr hattet
traer traj- trajisteis y'all brought y'all did bring
ihr habt gebracht
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
IR
decir dij- dijisteis y'all said y'all did say
ihr habt gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujisteis ** y'all -ducted, -duced y'all did -duct, -duce
ihr habt -duziert
venir vin- vinisteis y'all came y'all did come
ihr seid gekommen
** -DUCIR is an ending for a family of verbs, not a verb itself.
The pronoun VOSOTROS does not need to be stated in the preterite.
It is already clear by the ending that VOSOTROS is doing the action.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
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Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Ellos form
To make this form, add -ieron to the stem provided for each verb.
This form is important, as it is the basis for the formation of the past subjunctive.
AR This is the event. This is what they did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvieron they were out & about they did go around
sie waren beim ...
estar estuv- estuvieron they were (right then) being they did be
sie waren
ER
haber hub- hubieron * they had (2nd verb)
sie hatten (ge_____)
hacer hic- hicieron they did they did do
sie haben getan
poder pud- pudieron they could, were able to they did be able
sie haben gekonnt
poner pus- pusieron they put, placed they did put
sie haben gestellt
querer quis- quisieron they wanted they did want
sie haben gewollt
saber sup- supieron they found out, came to know they did find out
sie haben herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisficieron they satisfied they did satisfy
sie haben befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvieron they had they did have
sie hatten
traer traj- trajeron ** they brought they did bring
sie haben gebracht
IR
decir dij- dijeron ** they said they did say
sie haben gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujeron ** they -ducted, -duced they did -duct, -duce
sie haben -duziert
venir vin- vinieron they came they did come
sie sind gekommen
The pronoun ELLOS needs to be stated in the preterite, because the same form is used for ELLAS & USTEDES.
Once it is clear that ELLOS is the subject, it can be left out in further statements.
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
** Don't forget to use correct preterite endings on stems ending in -J.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
Back to Top
 
Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Ellas form
To make this form, add -ieron to the stem provided for each verb.
This form is important, as it is the basis for the formation of the past subjunctive.
AR This is the event. This is what they did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvieron they were out & about they did go around
sie waren beim ...
estar estuv- estuvieron they were (right then) being they did be
sie waren
ER
haber hub- hubieron * they had (2nd verb)
sie hatten (ge_____)
hacer hic- hicieron they did they did do
sie haben getan
poder pud- pudieron they could, were able to they did be able
sie haben gekonnt
poner pus- pusieron they put, placed they did put
sie haben gestellt
querer quis- quisieron they wanted they did want
sie haben gewollt
saber sup- supieron they found out, came to know they did find out
sie haben herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisficieron they satisfied they did satisfy
sie haben befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvieron they had they did have
sie hatten
traer traj- trajeron ** they brought they did bring
sie haben gebracht
IR
decir dij- dijeron ** they said they did say
sie haben gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujeron ** they -ducted, -duced they did -duct, -duce
sie haben -duziert
venir vin- vinieron they came they did come
sie sind gekommen
The pronoun ELLAS needs to be stated in the preterite, because the same form is used for ELLOS & USTEDES.
Once it is clear that ELLAS is the subject, it can be left out in further statements.
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
** Don't forget to use correct preterite endings on stems ending in -J.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
Back to Top
 
Preterite tense: Verbs with irregular stems
Ustedes form
To make this form, add -ieron to the stem provided for each verb.
This form is important, as it is the basis for the formation of the past subjunctive.
AR This is the event. This is what you did.
deutsch
andar anduv- anduvieron you were out & about you did go around
Sie waren beim ...
estar estuv- estuvieron you were (right then) being you did be
Sie waren
ER
haber hub- hubieron * you had (2nd verb)
Sie hatten (ge_____)
hacer hic- hicieron you did you did do
Sie haben getan
poder pud- pudieron you could, were able to you did be able
Sie haben gekonnt
poner pus- pusieron you put, placed you did put
Sie haben gestellt
querer quis- quisieron you wanted you did want
Sie haben gewollt
saber sup- supieron you found out, came to know you did find out
Sie haben herausgefunden
satisfacer satisfic- satisficieron you satisfied you did satisfy
Sie haben befriedigt
tener tuv- tuvieron you had you did have
Sie hatten
traer traj- trajeron ** you brought you did bring
Sie haben gebracht
IR
decir dij- dijeron ** you said you did say
Sie haben gesagt
-ducir -duj- -dujeron ** you -ducted, -duced you did -duct, -duce
Sie haben -duziert
venir vin- vinieron you came you did come
Sie sind gekommen
The pronoun USTEDES needs to be stated in the preterite, because the same form is used for ELLOS & ELLAS.
Once it is clear that USTEDES is the subject, it can be left out in further statements.
* Haber in the preterite forms is no longer used in compound tense formation, but can be found in classical literature. Only the 3rd person singular form is used to represent: "There was ..."
** Don't forget to use correct preterite endings on stems ending in -J.
A look at other forms:
YO
ÉL
ELLA
USTED
NOSOTROS
VOSOTROS
ELLOS
ELLAS
USTEDES
More information concerning the preterite tense
Back to Top