The preterite of entretener is used to express a specific instance of entertaining in the past, for example Entretuve a los niños toda la tarde (I entertained the children all afternoon). This tense emphasizes the completed action of entertaining at a particular moment.

This is an irregular verb that follows the same pattern as ‘tener’ in the preterite, changing to ‘entretuv-‘ in all forms.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Entretener (to entertain) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of entretener expresses a completed action of entertaining or keeping someone occupied in the past.

To entertain: Describes providing amusement, for example Entretuve a los niños con juegos (I entertained the children with games) or La película nos entretuvo por dos horas (The movie entertained us for two hours).

To keep busy/distract: Used for keeping someone occupied, for example Me entretuve leyendo mientras esperaba (I kept myself busy reading while I waited).

Examples

Examples of Entretener in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Entretuve a los niños durante horas. (I entertained the children for hours.)

Entretuviste a los invitados con tus historias. (You entertained the guests with your stories.)

El payaso entretuvo a todo el público. (The clown entertained the entire audience.)

Entretuvimos a nuestros padres con un show. (We entertained our parents with a show.)

Los músicos entretuvieron a la multitud. (The musicians entertained the crowd.)

Entretuve a mi hermano mientras esperábamos. (I entertained my brother while we waited.)

Entretuviste a todos con tu talento. (You entertained everyone with your talent.)

La banda entretuvo al público toda la noche. (The band entertained the audience all night.)

Entretuvimos a los ancianos con canciones. (We entertained the elderly with songs.)

Los artistas callejeros entretuvieron a los turistas. (The street artists entertained the tourists.)

Entretuve a mi mascota con juguetes nuevos. (I entertained my pet with new toys.)

Entretuviste a los pequeños con cuentos. (You entertained the little ones with stories.)

El mago entretuvo a todos con sus trucos. (The magician entertained everyone with their tricks.)

Entretuvimos a los visitantes con juegos. (We entertained the visitors with games.)

Los comediantes entretuvieron al público toda la tarde. (The comedians entertained the audience all afternoon.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Entretener (to entertain) 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.