Learn how to form sentences using regular Spanish preterit verbs
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Dylan: Hola, hola a todos, habla Dylan, ¿cómo están? |
| Carlos: What’s going on pod101 world? My name is Carlos. “Have You Met Your Spanish Match?” In this lesson, you will learn about the preterit tense. |
| Dylan: This conversation takes place in a home. |
| Carlos: This conversation is between Daniel and Andrés. |
| Dylan: The speakers are friends. So they are speaking informally. |
| Carlos: Let’s listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| DANIEL: Andrés, hoy conocí a la mujer de mis sueños. |
| ANDRÉS: ¡Ahyy!, Daniel, ¡cada 2 meses me dice lo mismo! |
| DANIEL: ajajaj, sí yo sé, pero esta vez sí es verdad. |
| ANDRÉS: Daniel, ¡Qué mentiroso!, ya no le creo, mejor deje de soñar despierto. |
| DANIEL: Andrés, en serio, ¡créame! |
| Daniel: Andrés, today I met the woman of my dreams. |
| Andrés: Ohhhh! Daniel, you tell me the same thing every two months! |
| Daniel: Haha! Yeah, I know, but this time it’s true. |
| Andrés: Daniel, what a liar! I don’t believe you anymore, you’d better stop daydreaming. |
| Daniel: Andrés, seriously, believe me! |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Carlos: Now Dylan, you know that in the United States, Latin dudes have like two reputations. One reputation is like, you know the womanizer and just you know, the completely stereotypical… |
| Dylan: Latin lover? |
| Carlos: Latin lover. And there is the other ones who like fall in love really hard and like really fast but growing up in Latin America, what did you seem to notice about the men when you were younger? |
| Dylan: Oh they are all dogs but I think that’s worldwide. |
| Carlos: Well, it’s pretty guttural. I feel like I should have a collar on or something. |
| Dylan: Now I think they fall in love easily. You know, but they are dogs so that’s their excuse you know. |
| Carlos: I think… |
| Dylan: You know, I keep falling in love, oh I keep falling in love. Oh I am in love with her now. Oh she is – I am in love with her now. And that’s just like… |
| Carlos: That’s just like the conversation. Okay, let’s take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Dylan: “Conocer”. |
| Carlos: “To know”, “to meet someone for the first time.” |
| Dylan: “Co-no-cer”, “conocer”. |
| Dylan: “Sueño”. |
| Carlos: “Dream.” |
| Dylan: “Sue-ño”, “sueño”. |
| Dylan: “Lo mismo”. |
| Carlos: “The same thing.” |
| Dylan: “Lo mis-mo”, “lo mismo”. |
| Dylan: “Verdad”. |
| Carlos: “True”, “real.” |
| Dylan: “Ver-dad”, “verdad”. |
| Dylan: “Mentiroso”. |
| Carlos: “Liar.” |
| Dylan: “Men-ti-ro-so”, “mentiroso”. |
| Dylan: “Soñar despierto”. |
| Carlos: “Daydream.” |
| Dylan: “So-ñar des-pier-to”, “soñar despierto”. |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Carlos: Okay, let’s have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Dylan: The first word we are going to look at is “conocer”. |
| Carlos: Something I know and yet still confused, “conocer”, “to know” or “to meet someone for the first time.” |
| Dylan: But only meeting for the first time. |
| Carlos: That’s the point of the confusion. |
| Dylan: Well, think on the example from the conversation. |
| Carlos: “Hoy…” Okay, okay. “Hoy conocí a la mujer de mis sueños”. |
| Dylan: “Today I met the woman of my dreams.” Can he meet her for the first time again? |
| Carlos: Nope, unless she gets amnesia. |
| Dylan: Exactly. Now let’s bring it even farther back than simply today. |
| Carlos: Okay. |
| Dylan: “Mi papá conoció a mi mamá en 1950”. |
| Carlos: “My father met my mother in 1950.” |
| Dylan: See, only once. |
| Carlos: But wait, what happens when I have to meet someone that I already know later for like coffee or something. |
| Dylan: Then we use the verb “encontrar” which means “to encounter” or “to meet.” |
| Carlos: Ah so all depends on the situation in which you are meeting someone. |
| Dylan: That’s exactly it. |
| Carlos: So now I know the verb “encontrar” is a related word. |
| Dylan: Related like brothers and sisters. |
| Carlos: Right on. |
| Dylan: Now let’s look at “sueños”. |
| Carlos: “Dreams.” I have always been accused of having my head in the clouds. |
| Dylan: And your feet never on the ground. |
| Carlos: That too. |
| Dylan: I can just wait, wait wait! I’ve actually heard you one day say “hoy conocí a la mujer de mis sueños”. |
| Carlos: Yeah, yeah, yeah sometimes I get carried away. If I meet a female I am really interested, she quickly becomes the woman of my dreams. |
| Dylan: Man, you got to tone that down Carlos. |
| Carlos: What, you do it every night, why not every day? |
| Dylan: Well, “es bueno tener sueños así a veces”. |
| Carlos: I know, “it’s good to have dreams like that sometimes.” |
| Dylan: Do you know the verb form “sueños”? |
| Carlos: Sure, the verb “soñar”, “to dream.” |
| Dylan: Or “el soñador”, “la soñadora”. |
| Carlos: “The dreamer”, yeah, “the dreamer.” I like that. That’s a cool way to be described and I am guilty of that myself. |
| Dylan: You are always the same. |
| Carlos: No, my personality does not change. |
| Dylan: But how often do you hear the phrase “lo mismo”? |
| Carlos: “The same thing” all the time. |
| Dylan: And like Andrés tells Daniel, I know I always tell you, “¡cada 2 meses me dices lo mismo!” |
| Carlos: “You tell me the same thing every two months.” |
| Dylan: Except with you, it’s a little more like once a week. |
| Carlos: Very true. |
| Dylan: Now “lo mismo” is very commonly used. |
| Carlos: Right, like I could say “mi mamá piensa lo mismo que tú”. |
| Dylan: I know your mother thinks the same as I do. |
| Carlos: Actually I think that everyone does. |
| Dylan: Now do you know the difference in using “lo mismo” from using “igual”? |
| Carlos: No. |
| Dylan: I don’t really think there is a difference, Carlos. |
| Carlos: Okay, so I can use it like interchangeably. |
| Dylan: Yeah. |
| Carlos: Okay, now I see. |
| Dylan: But you know honestly it is “the truth.” |
| Carlos: “La verdad”. |
| Dylan: You would think it was a masculine, wouldn’t it? |
| Carlos: Yes, I always had to think about it but I think I have memorized the fact that “verdad” is actually a feminine noun. |
| Dylan: “La verdad”. |
| Carlos: Thank you, Dylan. |
| Dylan: “La verdad”. |
| Carlos: And Daniel and Mr. Andrés is correct when he says “sí yo sé, pero esta vez sí es verdad”. |
| Dylan: Yeah, “I know, but this time it’s true.” I bet it is you men. |
| Carlos: You may say I am a dreamer but I am not the only one. |
| Dylan: That would have to been good to say with “sueño”. |
| Carlos: It just came to me, sorry. |
| Dylan: But he could have taken that the wrong way. |
| Carlos: What? What did Andrés say to him? |
| Dylan: Exactly because sometimes “la verdad es incómoda”. |
| Carlos: Right sometimes “the truth is very uncomfortable” but I think its okay well. |
| Dylan: Yeah, he did. |
| Carlos: Now I have heard the word “verdadero” before but like what does it mean because it’s hard for me to say? |
| Dylan: Ah, interesting. The related word is an adjective that means “true” or “real.” |
| Carlos: Thanks for answering that. You know, it came to mind that I didn’t have a dictionary on me. |
| Dylan: Luckily I am here to answer your questions. |
| Carlos: And now, we are going to the other side. |
| Dylan: Right, we covered truth. Now let’s cover... |
| Carlos: Lies. |
| Dylan: “Mentiroso, mentirosa”. |
| Carlos: An adjective that means “deceitful”, “liar”, neither very good things. |
| Dylan: Nope, not at all. |
| Carlos: So when Andrés says “¡qué mentiroso!”, “what a liar!”, he isn’t saying a good thing. |
| Dylan: No, not at all but I honestly don’t think he means it in a bad way. Kind of just like making fun of his friend. |
| Carlos: But see I have a friend that always exaggerate and talks way too much. |
| Dylan: What’s his name? |
| Carlos: Bobby! |
| Dylan: Well then, “Bobby nunca dice la verdad, es un mentiroso”. |
| Carlos: That’s right. “Bobby never tells the truth, he is a liar.” |
| Dylan: Now he always tells... |
| Carlos: “Mentiras”, “lies.” |
| Dylan: We have an adjective and a noun. How about a verb? |
| Carlos: “Mentir”, “to lie.” |
| Dylan: Okay, let’s get on more positive ground. I don’t like the vibe of this word. |
| Carlos: Definitely. |
| Dylan: Luckily our final entry is an expression, “soñar despierto”. |
| Carlos: “Day dreaming.” I majored in daydreaming like seriously I majored in.. |
| Dylan: Yeah, I bet you did. |
| Carlos: I can’t just sit through lectures. That’s why I think lessons like this are so valuable. |
| Dylan: Well, Andrés sure doesn’t seem to think it’s a good thing. |
| Carlos: “No, ya no le creo, mejor deje de soñar despierto”. |
| Dylan: “I don’t believe you anymore. You better stop daydreaming.” |
| Carlos: Man, what’s wrong with the dude thinking like that? |
| Dylan: I have no idea. I mean “¡Qué bonito es soñar despierto!” |
| Carlos: “How beautiful it is to daydream!” |
| Dylan: Do you know another related expression? |
| Carlos: No, I was trying to think of one. |
| Dylan: “Soñar dormido”, “soñar dormida”. |
| Carlos: “A sleeping dream”, of course. |
| Dylan: But I guess daydreaming is the one that needs to be defined. |
| Carlos: True that, true that. Okay, now that we are on the new season of the newbie series, let’s review. |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Dylan: Let’s take a look at the preterit tense. |
| Carlos: The preterit. I am an old pro at that now. |
| Dylan: Well, now you can give our listeners the benefit of all your reviews. |
| Carlos: Sounds good. Now first, the preterit tense is a past tense used to express... |
| Dylan: Something that occurred completely in the past. |
| Carlos: Right, unlike the imperfect which we will touch on in our lesson. |
| Dylan: Now the endings for the preterit tense are added to the stem of regular “ar”, “er” and “ir” verbs. |
| Carlos: You know, I seem to remember something about stress. |
| Dylan: All preterit forms are stressed on the endings rather than on the stem. |
| Carlos: That’s where the difference can get confusing. The first person singular form in the present tense and the third person singular of the preterit tense are distinguished only by stress. |
| Dylan: Right. Let’s look at the verb “tomar”, “to take.” How would you distinguish it? |
| Carlos: Well, the “yo” form in the present tense is “yo tomo”, first person singular, and the third person singular in the preterit is “el, ella, usted tomó”. |
| Dylan: That difference took you a little while to distinguish hah! |
| Carlos: Yeah, but that’s why reviews like this are so important. |
| Dylan: Luckily the endings for “ER” and “IR” verbs are the same. |
| Carlos: So that leaves us less to memorize and more to recognize. |
| Dylan: Where did you recognize a preterit tense in our conversation today? |
| Carlos: “Hoy conocí a la mujer de mis sueños”. |
| Dylan: “Today I met the girl of my dreams.” |
| Carlos: Now let’s take “conocer” and conjugate it. |
| Dylan: Sounds good. |
| Carlos: Okay, “conocer”. So remember, in the past it’s me in for the first time “yo conocí”, “I met”, “tú conociste”, “you met”, informal, “él, ella, usted conoció”, “he/she/you met”, formal, “nosotros conocimos”, “we met”, “vosotros conocisteis”, “you all met”, informal and “ellos, ellas, ustedes conocieron”, “they met masculine, they met feminine, you all met”, formal. |
| Dylan: Wow Carlos, now that was an “ER” verb. So now we see the endings for two categories. Let’s choose an “IR” verb. Let’s say “vivir”. |
| Carlos: “Vivir”, “to live”. “Yo viví”, “I lived”, “tú viviste”, “you lived”, “él, ella, usted vivió”, “he/she/you lived”, formal, “nosotros vivimos”, “we lived”, “vosotros vivisteis”, “you all lived”, informal, and “ellos, ellas, ustedes vivieron”, “they lived masculine, they lived feminine and you all lived”, formal. |
| Dylan: Makes it so much easier. |
| Carlos: That it does. Now you know, I like doing these things in threes. Let me pick an “AR” verb though “hablar”, “to speak.” |
| Dylan: Go for it. |
| Carlos: “Yo hablé”, “I spoke”, “tú hablaste”, “you spoke”, “el, ella, usted habló”, “he spoke, she spoke, you spoke”, formal, “nosotros hablamos”, “we spoke”, “vosotros hablasteis”, “you all spoke”, informal, and “ellos, ellas, ustedes hablaron”, “they spoke masculine, they spoke feminine, you all spoke”, formal. |
| Dylan: Okay, your work is done almost. |
| Carlos: Right. I need sample sentences for these three regular verbs but let’s listen in normal order, “ar” verb “hablar”, “to speak”, “er” verb “conocer” what we heard in today’s example, “to meet for the first time” and the “ir” verb “vivir”, “to live.” |
| Dylan: “Hablar”. “Hablé con él ayer”. |
| Carlos: “I spoke with him yesterday.” |
| Dylan: “¿Hablaste con el doctor?” |
| Carlos: “Did you speak to the doctor?” |
| Dylan: “¿Cuándo conocieron a Mari?” |
| Carlos: “When did you meet Mari?” |
| Dylan: “Conoció la mujer de sus sueños hoy”. |
| Carlos: “He met the girl of his dreams today.” |
| Dylan: “Viví en Los Ángeles.” |
| Carlos: “I lived in Los Angeles.” |
| Dylan: “¿Viviste con tu mamá?” |
| Carlos: “Did you live with your mother?” |
| Dylan: Now keep in mind, there are many, many irregular verbs in the preterit tense of the indicative mood. However, many of these are grouped into categories that can be memorized very easily with just a little practice. |
| Carlos: Right. That’s why we are mentioning them again. What were those good examples? |
| Dylan: For example, consider the verb “tener”, “to have.” If we learn that “yo tuve” means “I had”, then we already also know that “mantuve” means “I maintained” and that “contuve” means “I contained” and that “sostuve” means “I sustained.” |
Outro |
| Carlos: Okay, that sustained me for today. That just about does it for today guys. Okay, nos vemos, ¡chao! |
| Dylan: ¡Chao amigos! |
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