The preterite of convertirse is used to express when someone or something became something else at a specific moment in the past. For example, when you want to say “The company became successful overnight” – “La empresa se convirtió en exitosa de la noche a la mañana.”

This is an e to i stem-changing reflexive verb in the preterite tense. The stem change occurs only in the third person forms (singular and plural), and you must include the appropriate reflexive pronouns.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Convertirse (to become) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

The Preterite of convertirse expresses completed transformations or changes.

To become/turn into: Describes specific transformations, for example Se convirtió en médico después de años de estudio (She became a doctor after years of study), or El proyecto se convirtió en un gran éxito (The project turned into a great success).

To change into: Indicates transformation from one state to another, for example La situación se convirtió en crisis (The situation turned into a crisis).

Examples

Examples of Convertirse in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Se convirtió en un exitoso empresario. (He became a successful businessman.)

Me convertí en profesor después de graduarme. (I became a teacher after graduating.)

Te convertiste en una inspiración para todos. (You became an inspiration for everyone.)

Nos convertimos en buenos amigos. (We became good friends.)

Se convirtieron en expertos en tecnología. (They became technology experts.)

La empresa se convirtió en líder del mercado. (The company became the market leader.)

¿Cuándo te convertiste en vegetariano? (When did you become vegetarian?)

El proyecto se convirtió en un gran éxito. (The project became a great success.)

Nos convertimos en campeones nacionales. (We became national champions.)

Los aprendices se convirtieron en maestros. (The apprentices became masters.)

Me convertí en escritor a los 30 años. (I became a writer at 30 years old.)

Te convertiste en una persona diferente. (You became a different person.)

El pueblo se convirtió en ciudad. (The town became a city.)

Nos convertimos en expertos del tema. (We became experts on the subject.)

Se convirtieron en líderes del movimiento. (They became leaders of the movement.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Convertirse (to become) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Castilian Spanish. For Latin American 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.