The preterite of robar is used to express a specific instance of theft in the past. For example, you might say “Someone stole my wallet yesterday,” indicating a completed action at a particular moment.

This is a regular -ar verb that follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern. The endings are added directly to the stem ‘rob-‘ without any modifications.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Robar (to steal) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of robar describes a specific instance of theft or stealing in the past.

To steal: Indicates taking something that belongs to another, for example, Robaron el banco ayer (They robbed the bank yesterday).

To rob: Describes committing robbery, for example, Le robó la cartera en el metro (He/she stole his/her wallet on the subway).

To steal (figuratively): Used metaphorically, for example, Me robó el corazón (He/she stole my heart).

Examples

Examples of Robar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Alguien robó mi bicicleta ayer. (Someone stole my bicycle yesterday.)

Los ladrones robaron el banco. (The thieves robbed the bank.)

¿Te robaron el celular? (Did they steal your phone?)

Nos robaron las maletas en el aeropuerto. (Our suitcases were stolen at the airport.)

El ladrón robó joyas valiosas. (The thief stole valuable jewelry.)

Le robaron la cartera en el metro. (Their wallet was stolen on the subway.)

Robaron la tienda durante la noche. (They robbed the store during the night.)

Me robaron el auto estacionado. (My parked car was stolen.)

Les robaron todo el dinero. (All their money was stolen.)

El gato robó el pescado de la cocina. (The cat stole the fish from the kitchen.)

Robaron obras de arte del museo. (They stole artwork from the museum.)

Alguien robó las flores del jardín. (Someone stole the flowers from the garden.)

Le robaron la computadora de la oficina. (Their computer was stolen from the office.)

Los piratas robaron el tesoro. (The pirates stole the treasure.)

Robaron información confidencial. (They stole confidential information.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Robar (to steal) in the Preterite (Past) Tense 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.