You have already learned about the preterite tense for -ar verbs. It is used to talk about actions in the past. It works the same for “-er” and “-ir” verbs. Look at the conjugations of beber and vivir in the preterite tense. Notice how in the preterite, -er and -ir verbs conjugate the same way. ¡Qué fácil!
Follow these rules for the conjugations of regular -er / -ir verbs.
Watch the video below for more information.
| Repaso:
Terms associated with the Preterite (When you see these words, you’ll likely see the preterite) |
|
|---|---|
| ayer | yesterday |
| ayer por la mañana | yesterday morning |
| ayer por la tarde | yesterday afternoon |
| anteayer | the day before yesterday |
| anoche | last night |
| desde el primer momento | from the first moment |
| después | afterwards |
| durante dos siglos | for two centuries |
| el año pasado | last year |
| el lunes por la noche | Monday night |
| el mes pasado | last month |
| el otro día | the other day |
| en ese momento | at that moment |
| entonces | then |
| esta mañana | this morning |
| esta tarde | this afternoon |
| hace dos días, años | two days, years ago |
| la semana pasada | last week |
(source)