The preterite of seguir is used to express a specific instance of following something or someone in the past. For example, you might say “I followed the instructions exactly,” describing a completed action with clear start and end points.

This is an e to i stem-changing verb, which means the ‘e’ changes to ‘i’ in certain forms. In the preterite, this stem change occurs only in the third person singular and plural forms.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Seguir (to follow) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The Preterite of seguir describes completed actions of following or continuing in the past.

To follow physically: Describes tracking or following someone/something, for example Lo seguí hasta su casa (I followed him to his house).

To continue/proceed: Indicates persistence in an action, for example Siguió trabajando después del accidente (She continued working after the accident).

To follow instructions/advice: Shows compliance with directions, for example Siguieron las instrucciones al pie de la letra (They followed the instructions to the letter).

Examples

Examples of Seguir in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Seguí el consejo del médico. (I followed the doctor’s advice.)

¿Seguiste las instrucciones? (Did you follow the instructions?)

El detective siguió las pistas. (The detective followed the clues.)

Seguimos el camino equivocado. (We followed the wrong path.)

Los turistas siguieron al guía. (The tourists followed the guide.)

Seguí estudiando después de graduarme. (I continued studying after graduating.)

¿Por qué no seguiste mi consejo? (Why didn’t you follow my advice?)

El gato siguió el rayo de luz. (The cat followed the beam of light.)

Seguimos la receta al pie de la letra. (We followed the recipe exactly.)

Los estudiantes siguieron el ejemplo. (The students followed the example.)

Seguí mi intuición. (I followed my intuition.)

¿Seguiste el mapa correctamente? (Did you follow the map correctly?)

El río siguió su curso natural. (The river followed its natural course.)

Seguimos adelante con el plan. (We continued with the plan.)

Los pájaros siguieron su ruta migratoria. (The birds followed their migratory route.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Seguir (to follow) 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.