Cepillarse Preterite (Past) Tense in Latin American Spanish

The preterite of cepillarse is used to express a specific instance of brushing yourself in the past. For example, you might say “I brushed my teeth after breakfast,” indicating when the grooming action was completed.

This is a regular -ar reflexive verb that requires the appropriate reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos) before the conjugated form. The verb follows standard -ar preterite endings after adding the reflexive pronoun.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cepillarse (to brush oneself) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

Pronoun Conjugation
Yome cepillé
te cepillaste
Él / Ella / Ustedse cepilló
Nosotros / Nosotrasnos cepillamos
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedesse cepillaron

Boost Your Memorization with Audio!

We’ve included audio recordings of the the conjugations of Cepillarse (to brush oneself) in the Preterite (Past) Tense to help you learn faster.

Pro Tip: Play the audio on a loop as you study the chart. This repetition will solidify the correct conjugations in your memory.

Usage of Cepillarse in the Preterite (Past) Tense

The Preterite of cepillarse expresses completed actions of brushing oneself.

Brushing: Used for personal grooming, for example me cepillé los dientes (I brushed my teeth).

Grooming: Describes cleaning or tidying oneself, for example se cepilló el pelo (she brushed her hair).

Examples

Examples of Cepillarse in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Me cepillé los dientes después de comer. (I brushed my teeth after eating.)

¿Te cepillaste el pelo esta mañana? (Did you brush your hair this morning?)

Ella se cepilló los dientes antes de dormir. (She brushed her teeth before bed.)

Nos cepillamos después del almuerzo. (We brushed after lunch.)

Los niños se cepillaron antes de la escuela. (The children brushed before school.)

Me cepillé el cabello con cuidado. (I brushed my hair carefully.)

¿Te cepillaste después del dulce? (Did you brush after the candy?)

Mi hermana se cepilló tres veces al día. (My sister brushed three times a day.)

Nos cepillamos antes de salir. (We brushed before going out.)

Los pacientes se cepillaron después de la comida. (The patients brushed after the meal.)

Me cepillé rápidamente antes de la cita. (I brushed quickly before the appointment.)

¿Te cepillaste bien los dientes? (Did you brush your teeth well?)

El niño se cepilló sin ayuda. (The child brushed without help.)

Nos cepillamos después del postre. (We brushed after dessert.)

Todos se cepillaron antes de la foto. (Everyone brushed before the photo.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cepillarse (to brush oneself) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

Spanish English
Yo me cepillé I brushed myself
Tú te cepillaste You brushed yourself
Él / Ella / Usted se cepilló He / She / You brushed themselves
Nosotros / Nosotras nos cepillamos We brushed ourselves
Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes se cepillaron They / You all brushed themselves

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.