Yo que tú lo hacía. (see 67.1)
If I were you I’d do it.
(b) Saying politeness.
Mire, quería decirle algo. (see 30.2)
Look, I want(ed) to tell you something.
17.4 Preterite
73.4–73.8 (pp. 418–420)
(a) Referring to the beginning of a past action or state:
Se gustaron desde el primer momento.
They liked each other from the start.
Entonces supe la verdad.
Then I found out the truth.
Nos conocimos en México.
We met in Mexico.
(b) Complete events in the past, or events or a series of events lasting over a definite
period in the past:
Ayer vi a Isabel. (see 73.4)
I saw Isabel yesterday.
¿Y no tuviste miedo? No, en ese momento no tuve miedo. (see 65 )
And didn’t you get frightened? No, at that moment I wasn’t afraid.
Hubo un ruido.
There was a noise. (implies that the noise started at a certain point or was
momentary)
Vivimos en Barcelona durante cinco meses. (see 73.6)
We lived in Barcelona for five months.
Aquel año fui muchas veces a visitarla.
That year I went to see her often.
(c) A past event completed before another past event, as part of a sequence of events,
or during an ongoing state of affairs:
Luego que terminó la carta, se sentó a leer. (see 73.7)
After he/she had finished the letter, he/she sat down to read.
Luego de eso se vino abajo.
After that it all fell through.
Leía cuando llegó.
I was reading when he/she arrived.
It is extremely important to distinguish between the imperfect and the preterite in
Spanish, since there is always a difference in meaning between the two. Contrast the
following sentences:
17.4
Preterite
