The preterite of barrer is used to express a completed action of sweeping in the past. For example, you might say “I swept the floor this morning,” indicating a specific instance when the sweeping was finished.

This is a regular -er verb that follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern. Its conjugations are formed by adding the regular preterite endings to the stem ‘barr-‘.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Barrer (to sweep) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of barrer describes completed sweeping actions. Sweeping: Indicates a specific instance of sweeping that was completed, for example, barrí el patio esta mañana (I swept the patio this morning). Clearing Away: Used for removing debris or dirt completely, for example, barrieron las hojas del camino (they swept the leaves from the path). Metaphorical Use: Can mean to wipe out or eliminate completely, for example, barrió con la competencia (he/she wiped out the competition).

Examples

Examples of Barrer in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Barrí el piso de la cocina. (I swept the kitchen floor.)

¿Barriste el patio esta mañana? (Did you sweep the patio this morning?)

Ella barrió las hojas del jardín. (She swept the leaves from the garden.)

Barrimos toda la casa ayer. (We swept the entire house yesterday.)

Los conserjes barrieron el pasillo. (The janitors swept the hallway.)

Barrí la entrada antes de la fiesta. (I swept the entrance before the party.)

¿Por qué no barriste tu cuarto? (Why didn’t you sweep your room?)

El vendedor barrió la tienda al cerrar. (The shopkeeper swept the store at closing time.)

Barrimos la terraza después de la tormenta. (We swept the terrace after the storm.)

Los empleados barrieron la oficina. (The employees swept the office.)

Barrí las escaleras del edificio. (I swept the building stairs.)

Mi hermana barrió su habitación. (My sister swept her room.)

Barrimos la acera temprano. (We swept the sidewalk early.)

El conserje barrió el gimnasio. (The janitor swept the gym.)

Los estudiantes barrieron el salón de clases. (The students swept the classroom.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Barrer (to sweep) 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.