Download Preterite Tense –er and –ir Verbs

Preterite Tense –er and –ir
Verbs
To form the Preterite Tense with –er and –ir verbs, the following endings are added to
the verb stem:
-í
-imos
-iste
-isteis
-ió
-ieron
For example:
To form the preterite of the verb comer in the nosotros form, take off the -er and you
are left with the stem of the verb (com-). Now add the ending –imos for nosotros.
comer  com + imos  comimos
nosotros comimos
we ate
Let’s look at all the comer conjugations in the preterite tense:
comí
comimos
comiste
comisteis
comió
comieron
Now let’s take a look at the –ir verb vivir.
viví
viviste
vivió
vivimos
vivisteis
vivieron
Meaning and Usage
The preterite is also known as the simple past. It often tells specifically when something
took place. When you are describing single, completed events in the past, use the
preterite.
For example:
Ayer comimos arroz con leche.
Ellos escondieron el tesoro.
¿Comprendiste la lección?
Abrí la lata.
Escribiste una carta.
Él vivió en Chile el año pasado.
Yesterday we ate rice pudding.
They hid the treasure.
Did you understand the lesson?
I opened the can.
You wrote a letter.
He lived in Chile last year.
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