usar preterite conjugation
Usar (to use) in the preterite: usé, usaste, usó, usamos, usasteis, usaron.
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.
Usar 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
Usar in a sentence
- Uso mi teléfono todos los días.I use my phone every day.
- Ayer usé el diccionario para la tarea.Yesterday I used the dictionary for homework.
Regular -ar verb; also means 'to wear' when referring to clothes.
FAQ
What is the preterite of usar?
Usar in the Spanish preterite: yo usé, tú usaste, él/ella/usted usó, nosotros usamos, vosotros usasteis, ellos/ellas/ustedes usaron.
Is usar irregular in the preterite?
No. In the preterite usar takes the regular endings for its verb class, so usé 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 usar conjugation, all tenses →
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