The preterite of tocar is used to express a specific instance of playing an instrument or touching something in the past. For example, you might say “I played the piano at the concert,” indicating a completed performance.

This is a spelling-change verb, where ‘c’ changes to ‘qu’ before ‘e’ in the first person singular form to maintain the correct sound.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Tocar (to play/touch) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of tocar indicates a completed action of touching or playing an instrument in the past.

To touch: Describes physical contact, for example Toqué la superficie caliente (I touched the hot surface) or Tocó mi hombro suavemente (He/she touched my shoulder gently).

To play music: Used for playing musical instruments, for example Toqué el piano en el concierto (I played the piano at the concert).

To knock/ring: Refers to knocking on doors or ringing bells, for example Tocó el timbre tres veces (He/she rang the bell three times).

Examples

Examples of Tocar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

El músico tocó el piano toda la noche. (The musician played the piano all night.)

Toqué la guitarra en el concierto escolar. (I played the guitar at the school concert.)

La banda tocó sus mejores canciones. (The band played their best songs.)

Tocaste muy bien la flauta hoy. (You played the flute very well today.)

Tocamos música clásica en el teatro. (We played classical music at the theater.)

Los niños tocaron la puerta antes de entrar. (The children knocked on the door before entering.)

Toqué el timbre varias veces. (I rang the doorbell several times.)

El artista tocó varios instrumentos durante su presentación. (The artist played several instruments during their performance.)

Tocaste un tema muy bonito. (You played a very beautiful piece.)

Tocamos juntos en la orquesta. (We played together in the orchestra.)

Los estudiantes tocaron en el recital. (The students played at the recital.)

Toqué el violín por primera vez. (I played the violin for the first time.)

Ella tocó mi hombro suavemente. (She touched my shoulder softly.)

Tocaste mi corazón con tus palabras. (You touched my heart with your words.)

Los músicos tocaron hasta el amanecer. (The musicians played until dawn.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Tocar (to play/touch) 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.