The preterite of manejar is used to express a completed action of driving in the past. For example, you might say “I drove to the beach yesterday,” indicating a specific journey that was completed.

This is a regular -ar verb that follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern. All forms are perfectly regular, making it straightforward to learn and use.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Manejar (to drive) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of manejar describes a completed action of driving or handling in the past.

To drive: Refers to operating a vehicle, for example Manejé hasta la playa (I drove to the beach) or Manejaron toda la noche (They drove all night).

To handle/manage: Used for dealing with situations, for example Manejó bien la crisis (He/she handled the crisis well).

Examples

Examples of Manejar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Manejé toda la noche para llegar a tiempo. (I drove all night to arrive on time.)

¿Manejaste hasta el aeropuerto? (Did you drive to the airport?)

Él manejó con mucho cuidado en la lluvia. (He drove very carefully in the rain.)

Manejamos por la costa. (We drove along the coast.)

Los turistas manejaron por todo el país. (The tourists drove across the country.)

Manejé tres horas sin parar. (I drove for three hours without stopping.)

¿Por qué no manejaste tú? (Why didn’t you drive?)

Mi hermana manejó el auto nuevo. (My sister drove the new car.)

Manejamos hasta la playa. (We drove to the beach.)

Los estudiantes manejaron hasta la universidad. (The students drove to the university.)

Manejé de regreso a casa. (I drove back home.)

¿Manejaste con el GPS? (Did you drive with the GPS?)

Mi padre manejó el camión. (My father drove the truck.)

Manejamos durante el atardecer. (We drove during sunset.)

Ellos manejaron toda la noche. (They drove all night.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Manejar (to drive) 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.