Preterite - er and ir verbs  


More on Preterite Tense

Let's consider the preterite tense of regular -er and -ir verbs. To determine the correct forms of a verb, we start with its infinitive form. The infinitive form of the verb meaning (to run) in Spanish is (correr).

Now we take off the -er ending:
correr - er = corr

Now we add on one of the preterite tense endings. The ending chosen will depend upon the gender of the subject and whether it is singular or plural.

Endings for -er and -ir verbs in the preterite tense
yo í
tú iste
Ud./ él/ ella ió
nosotros imos
vosotros isteis
Uds./ ellos/ ellas ieron
Preterite forms of the verb correr (to run)

correr (example sentences) (full conjugation)

yo corrí (I ran)
tú corriste (you ran)
Ud./él/ella corrió (you/he/she ran)
nosotros (as) corrimos (we ran)
vosotros (as) corristeis (you guys ran)
Uds./ellos/ ellas corrieron (you all/they ran)
Preterite forms of the verb escribir (to write)

escribir (example sentences) (full conjugation)

yo escribí (I wrote)
tú escribiste (you wrote)
Ud./él/ella escribió (you/he/she wrote)
nosotros (as) escribimos (we wrote)
vosotros (as) escribisteis (you guys wrote)
Uds./ellos/ ellas escribieron (you all/they wrote)
Footnote: Yo = I, Tú = You (casual), Él, Ella, Usted = He, She, You
(formal), Nosotros = We (males/mixed group), Nosotras = We (females), Ellos
= They (males/mixed group), Ellas = They(females), Ustedes = You (plural)



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