Esperar preterite conjugation
Esperar in the preterite: esperé, esperaste, esperó, esperamos, esperasteis, esperaron.
- to wait; to hope; to expect
- regular
- Participle: esperado
- Gerund: esperando
Preterite pretérito
| yo | esperé |
|---|---|
| tú | esperaste |
| él/ella/usted | esperó |
| nosotros | esperamos |
| vosotros | esperasteis |
| ellos/ellas/ustedes | esperaron |
How to use esperar in the preterite
The preterite of esperar is regular: esperé, esperaste, esperó, esperamos, esperaron. Use it for a specific wait: "Esperé media hora." With "a que" plus the past subjunctive, it says what you waited for: "Esperamos a que terminara de llover." The accent on esperé and esperó marks the past. Remember that esperamos is the same in present and preterite, so a time word often shows which is meant.
Examples
Esperé media hora y nadie me atendió.
I waited half an hour and nobody helped me.
Esperamos a que terminara la lluvia para salir.
We waited for the rain to stop before leaving.
¿Esperaste mucho en el aeropuerto?
Did you wait long at the airport?
Quick check: esperar in the preterite
More esperar tenses
- All esperar tenses
- Esperar present
- Esperar imperfect
- Esperar future
- Esperar conditional
- Esperar present subjunctive
- Esperar affirmative commands
Other verbs in the preterite
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