The preterite of acercar is used to express a specific instance of bringing something closer in the past, for example Me acerqué a la ventana (I moved closer to the window). This tense emphasizes the completed action of moving closer at a particular moment.

As a regular -ar verb, acercar follows the standard preterite pattern with one spelling change: the ‘c’ changes to ‘qu’ before ‘é’ in the first person singular to maintain the hard ‘k’ sound.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Acercar (to bring closer) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of acercar expresses a completed action of bringing closer or approaching in the past.

To bring closer: Describes moving something nearer, for example Acerqué la silla a la mesa (I brought the chair closer to the table) or Se acercó para ver mejor (He/she came closer to see better).

To approach: Used for moving toward something or someone, for example Me acerqué a saludar (I approached to say hello).

Examples

Examples of Acercar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Acerqué la silla a la mesa. (I brought the chair closer to the table.)

Acercaste el carro a la entrada. (You brought the car closer to the entrance.)

El mesero acercó los platos a los comensales. (The waiter brought the plates closer to the diners.)

Acercamos los pupitres a la pizarra. (We brought the desks closer to the blackboard.)

Los empleados acercaron las cajas al almacén. (The employees brought the boxes closer to the warehouse.)

Acerqué el micrófono a los músicos. (I brought the microphone closer to the musicians.)

Acercaste la lámpara al sofá. (You brought the lamp closer to the sofa.)

El fotógrafo acercó la cámara al modelo. (The photographer brought the camera closer to the model.)

Acercamos las sillas al fuego. (We brought the chairs closer to the fire.)

Los bomberos acercaron la manguera al edificio. (The firefighters brought the hose closer to the building.)

Acerqué el espejo a la ventana. (I brought the mirror closer to the window.)

Acercaste el televisor a la pared. (You brought the TV closer to the wall.)

La madre acercó la cuna a su cama. (The mother brought the crib closer to her bed.)

Acercamos los libros a la estantería. (We brought the books closer to the bookshelf.)

Los técnicos acercaron el equipo al escenario. (The technicians brought the equipment closer to the stage.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Acercar (to bring closer) 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.