alcanzar preterite conjugation
Alcanzar (to reach/achieve) in the preterite: alcancé, alcanzaste, alcanzó, alcanzamos, alcanzasteis, alcanzaron.
Pretérito indefinido Preterite
| yo | |
|---|---|
| tú | |
| él/ella/usted | |
| nosotros | |
| vosotros | |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes |
ending regular · irr breaks the pattern · tap a form to hear it
When to use the preterite
The preterite (pretérito indefinido) is the past tense for completed actions with a clear start or end: “Ayer hice la cena.” For background, habits and ongoing states in the past, Spanish uses the imperfect instead.
How it is formed
Regular endings: -ar → é, aste, ó, amos, asteis, aron; -er/-ir → í, iste, ió, imos, isteis, ieron. Many common verbs use an irregular stem (hic-, tuv-, estuv-, pud-, quis-, dij-) with unstressed endings -e, -iste, -o, -imos, -isteis, -ieron.
Alcanzar is regular here, so it is a good model for other verbs of the same class.
Read more: Preterite vs imperfect: when to use each
Alcanzar in a sentence
- Alcanzo mis metas con esfuerzo.I reach my goals with effort.
- Alcanzamos la cima de la montaña.We reached the summit of the mountain.
Spelling change z→c before e: preterite yo 'alcancé'.
FAQ
What is the preterite of alcanzar?
Alcanzar in the Spanish preterite: yo alcancé, tú alcanzaste, él/ella/usted alcanzó, nosotros alcanzamos, vosotros alcanzasteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes alcanzaron.
Is alcanzar irregular in the preterite?
No. In the preterite alcanzar takes the regular endings for its verb class, so alcancé follows the same pattern as any regular verb.
When do you use the Spanish preterite?
The preterite (pretérito indefinido) is the past tense for completed actions with a clear start or end: “Ayer hice la cena.” For background, habits and ongoing states in the past, Spanish uses the imperfect instead.
How is the preterite formed?
Regular endings: -ar → é, aste, ó, amos, asteis, aron; -er/-ir → í, iste, ió, imos, isteis, ieron. Many common verbs use an irregular stem (hic-, tuv-, estuv-, pud-, quis-, dij-) with unstressed endings -e, -iste, -o, -imos, -isteis, -ieron.
Full alcanzar conjugation, all tenses →
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