The preterite of lanzar is used to express a specific instance of throwing or launching something in the past, for example El pitcher lanzó la pelota a gran velocidad (The pitcher threw the ball at high speed). This tense emphasizes the completed action of throwing at a particular moment.

This verb requires a spelling change in the first person singular, where ‘z’ changes to ‘c’ before ‘é’ to maintain the same sound. Otherwise, it follows the regular -ar verb pattern in the preterite.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Lanzar (to throw/launch) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of lanzar expresses a completed action of throwing or launching in the past.

To throw/launch: Describes propelling something, for example Lancé la pelota muy lejos (I threw the ball very far) or Lanzaron el nuevo producto (They launched the new product).

To release/issue: Used for releasing products or statements, for example La empresa lanzó una campaña nueva (The company launched a new campaign).

Examples

Examples of Lanzar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Lancé la pelota al otro lado del campo. (I threw the ball to the other side of the field.)

Lanzaste el proyecto con éxito. (You successfully launched the project.)

La empresa lanzó un nuevo producto. (The company launched a new product.)

Lanzamos una campaña publicitaria. (We launched an advertising campaign.)

Los científicos lanzaron el cohete al espacio. (The scientists launched the rocket into space.)

Lancé mi primer negocio online. (I launched my first online business.)

Lanzaste la piedra muy lejos. (You threw the stone very far.)

El artista lanzó su nuevo álbum. (The artist launched their new album.)

Lanzamos globos al aire. (We released balloons into the air.)

Los manifestantes lanzaron sus protestas. (The protesters launched their protests.)

Lancé una pregunta al público. (I threw a question to the audience.)

Lanzaste el dado sobre la mesa. (You threw the die on the table.)

El pitcher lanzó la bola rápida. (The pitcher threw the fast ball.)

Lanzamos el mensaje en una botella. (We launched the message in a bottle.)

Las tiendas lanzaron sus ofertas. (The stores launched their sales.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Lanzar (to throw/launch) 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.