Complete Spanish Verb Course

7.4. Spanish Preterite: Irregular Dar, Ir, and Ser
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Preterite Irregular Dar, Ir, and Ser
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Preterite Irregular Dar, Ir, and Ser
7.5. Spanish Preterite: Irregular e to i, o to u
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Irregular e to i, o to u, i to y
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Preterite – Irregular e to i, o to u, i to y
7.6. Spanish Preterite: Irregular car, gar, zar
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Irregular car, gar, zar
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Preterite – Irregular car, gar, zar
7.4.-7.6. Mini Brain Boost: Dar/Ir/Ser, Stem Changes, car/gar/zar
2 Topics | 1 Quiz
Retrieval Conjugation: Dar/Ir/Ser, Stem Changes, car/gar/zar
Interleaved Game: Dar/Ir/Ser, Stem Changes, car/gar/zar
Interleaved Sentence Quiz: Dar/Ir/Ser, Stem Changes, car/gar/zar
7.7. Spanish Reflexive Preterite Verbs
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Reflexive Verbs
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Preterite – Reflexive Verbs
Brain Boost: Present, Preterite, Present Perfect
Retrieval Practice: Spanish Present, Preterite, Present Perfect
3 Topics
Review: Spanish Present, Preterite, Present Perfect
Conjugator Retrieval: Spanish Present, Preterite, Present Perfect
Conjugator Retrieval: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-7)
Interleaving: Spanish Present, Preterite, Present Perfect
2 Topics | 1 Quiz
Interleaved Game: Spanish Present, Preterite, and Present Perfect
Interleaved Game: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-7)
Interleaved Sentence Quiz: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-7)
Section 8: Spanish Imperfect Tense
8.1. Spanish Imperfect tense: Regular
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Imperfect Tense – Regular
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Imperfect Tense – Regular
8.2. Spanish Imperfect tense: Irregular
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Imperfect Tense – Irregular
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Imperfect Tense – Irregular
8.3. Spanish Imperfect tense: Reflexive
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Imperfect Tense – Reflexive
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Imperfect Tense – Reflexive
Brain Boost: Spanish Preterite and Imperfect
Preterite and Imperfect Together
1 Topic
Instruction: Preterite and Imperfect Together
Retrieval Practice: Preterite, Imperfect, and Others
3 Topics
Review: Preterite and Imperfect
Conjugator Retrieval: Preterite, Imperfect and Present Perfect
Conjugator Retrieval: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-8)
Interleaving: Preterite, Imperfect, and All Others
2 Topics | 1 Quiz
Interleaved Game: Preterite and Imperfect
Interleaved Game: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-8)
Interleaved Sentence Quiz: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-8)
Section 9: Spanish Future Tense
9.1 Spanish Future Tense: Regular Verbs
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Future Tense – Regular
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Future Tense – Regular
9.2 Spanish Future Tense: Irregular Verbs
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Future Tense – Irregular
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Future Tense – Irregular
9.3 Spanish Future Tense: Reflexive Verbs
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Future Tense – Reflexive
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Future Tense – Reflexive
9.4. Spanish Informal future (ir a + infinitive)
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Informal future (ir a + infinitive)
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Informal future (ir a + infinitive)
Brain Boost: Present, Preterite, Future
Retrieval Practice: Present, Preterite, Future
3 Topics
Review: Present, Preterite, and Future
Conjugator Retrieval: Present, Preterite, Future
Conjugator Retrieval: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-9)
Interleaving: Spanish Present, Preterite, and Future
2 Topics | 1 Quiz
Interleaved Game: Spanish Present, Preterite, and Future
Interleaved Game: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-9)
Interleaved Sentence Quiz: All Spanish Tenses to this Point (2-9)
Section 10: Spanish Conditional Tense
10.1 Spanish Conditional Tense: Regular Verbs
2 Topics
Instruction: Spanish Conditional Tense – Regular
Conjugation Practice: Spanish Conditional Tense – Regular
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Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Irregular e to i, o to u, i to y

Complete Spanish Verb Course 7.5. Spanish Preterite: Irregular e to i, o to u Instruction: Spanish Preterite – Irregular e to i, o to u, i to y

In the preterite tense, certain Spanish verbs experience stem changes, but these changes only occur in the third person singular (él/ella/usted) and third person plural (ellos/ellas/ustedes) forms. These stem changes can be tricky to remember, so it’s important to practice them to ensure fluency in describing past events. The verbs in this lesson undergo specific changes from e to i, o to u, and i to y in the third person forms.

Irregular Stem-Changing Patterns

The following verbs exhibit irregular stem changes in the preterite tense:

  1. e → i change:

    • Pedir (to ask for)
    • Reír (to laugh)
    • Sentir (to feel)

  2. o → u change:

    • Dormir (to sleep)

  3. i → y change:

    • Caer (to fall)
    • Creer (to believe)
    • Leer (to read)
    • Oír (to hear)
    • Concluir (to conclude)

Conjugation Patterns

Here’s how these verbs change in the preterite tense:

1. e → i Stem-Changing Verbs

In the third person forms, the e in the stem changes to i.

Yo

pedí

reí

sentí

Nosotros

pedimos

reímos

sentimos

Tú

(Juana, Juan)

pediste

reíste

sentiste

Vosotros

(informal Spain)

pedistéis

reísteis

sentistéis

Él/Ella/Ud.

(Sra./Dr. García)

pidió

rió

sintió

Ellos/Ellas/Uds.

pidieron

rieron

sintieron

Examples:

  • Pedir:

    • Ella pidió ayuda con su tarea. (She asked for help with her homework.)
    • Ellos pidieron comida en el restaurante. (They ordered food at the restaurant.)

  • Reír:

    • Él rió a carcajadas. (He laughed out loud.)
    • Uds. reímos, y ellos también rieron. (We laughed, and they laughed too.)

  • Sentir:

    • Yo sentí frío, pero él sintió calor. (I felt cold, but he felt warm.)
    • Ellos sintieron mucha alegría al ganar el premio. (They felt great joy when they won the prize.)

2. o → u Stem-Changing Verbs

Yo

dormí

Nosotros

dormimos

Tú

(Juana, Juan)

dormiste

Vosotros

(informal Spain)

dormisteis

Él/Ella/Ud.

(Sra./Dr. García)

durmió

Ellos/Ellas/Uds.

durmieron

Examples:

  • Dormir:
    • Ella durmió durante ocho horas. (She slept for eight hours.)
    • Ellos durmieron en una tienda de campaña. (They slept in a tent.)

3. i → y Stem-Changing Verbs

In the third person forms, the i in the stem changes to y. This change occurs to avoid the awkward pronunciation that would result from having three vowels in a row.

Yo

caí

creí

leí

oí

concluí

Nosotros

caímos

creímos

leímos

oímos

concluímos

Tú

(Juana, Juan)

caíste

creíste

leíste

oíste

concluíste

Vosotros

(informal Spain)

caísteis

creísteis

leísteis

oísteis

concluísteis

Él/Ella/Ud.

(Sra./Dr. García)

cayó

creyó

leyó

oyó

concluyó

Ellos/Ellas/Uds.

cayeron

creyeron

leyeron

oyeron

concluyeron

Examples:

  • Caer:

    • Él cayó al suelo mientras corría. (He fell to the ground while running.)
    • Los niños cayeron en la nieve. (The children fell in the snow.)

  • Creer:

    • Ella creyó en su palabra. (She believed his word.)
    • Ellos creyeron en la historia. (They believed the story.)

  • Leer:

    • Él leyó el libro en una tarde. (He read the book in one afternoon.)
    • Los estudiantes leyeron todos los capítulos. (The students read all the chapters.)

  • Oír:

    • Ella oyó un ruido extraño. (She heard a strange noise.)
    • Ellos oyeron la música desde lejos. (They heard the music from afar.)

  • Concluir:

    • El profesor concluyó la clase con un resumen. (The teacher concluded the class with a summary.)
    • Los científicos concluyeron que el experimento fue un éxito. (The scientists concluded that the experiment was a success.
Conclusion

Mastering the irregular stem changes in the preterite tense is important for accurately conveying past actions in Spanish. These verbs often appear in narratives, so it’s important to practice their unique conjugations. By becoming familiar with these stem changes, especially the ones that only occur in the third person forms, you’ll improve your ability to communicate effectively in the past tense. Keep practicing, and soon these forms will become second nature!

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