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Conjugation Chart of “Deber” (to owe/should) in the Preterite (Past) Tense

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Understanding the Preterite (Past) Tense of “Deber”

The preterite of deber is used to express owing something or having an obligation at a specific point in the past. For example, you might say “I owed him money last month,” indicating a specific period of obligation.

This is a regular -er verb that follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern. The endings are consistent with other regular -er verbs in the preterite tense.

How to Use Deber in the Preterite (Past) Tense

The preterite of deber expresses completed obligations or duties in the past.

Had to/Should have: Indicates a past obligation or duty that was fulfilled, for example Debí estudiar para el examen (I had to study for the exam). Can also express regret about past actions, as in No debí decir eso (I shouldn’t have said that).

Owed: Refers to a debt that was settled in the past, for example Le debí dinero por mucho tiempo (I owed him money for a long time).

Real Life Examples of Deber in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Le debí dinero por mucho tiempo. (I owed him money for a long time.)

¿Cuánto me debiste pagar? (How much did you have to pay me?)

Ella debió entregar el trabajo ayer. (She should have submitted the work yesterday.)

Debimos llegar más temprano. (We should have arrived earlier.)

Ellos debieron avisarnos antes. (They should have told us before.)

Debí escuchar tu consejo. (I should have listened to your advice.)

¿Debiste trabajar el fin de semana? (Did you have to work on the weekend?)

Mi amigo me debió un favor. (My friend owed me a favor.)

Debimos estudiar más para el examen. (We should have studied more for the exam.)

Los estudiantes debieron presentar sus proyectos. (The students had to present their projects.)

Debí llamarte antes. (I should have called you earlier.)

¿Cuánto le debiste al banco? (How much did you owe the bank?)

El equipo debió ganar ese partido. (The team should have won that game.)

Debimos reservar con anticipación. (We should have made reservations in advance.)

Ellos debieron pagar la cuenta. (They had to pay the bill.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Deber (to owe/should) in the Preterite (Past) Tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Preterite tense is also known as the Simple Past, Past Simple, Definite Past, Absolute Past, or Past Tense Indicative in English, and as Pretérito Perfecto Simple, Pretérito Indefinido, Pretérito Simple, Pasado Simple, or Pretérito de Indicativo in Spanish.