The preterite of cruzar is used to express a specific instance of crossing something in the past. For example, you might say “I crossed the street when the light turned green,” indicating a completed action at a specific moment.

This is a spelling-change verb, where ‘z’ changes to ‘c’ before ‘e’ in the first person singular form to maintain the correct sound.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Cruzar (to cross) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of cruzar describes a completed action of crossing in the past.

To cross: Describes moving from one side to another, for example Crucé la calle con cuidado (I crossed the street carefully) or Cruzaron el puente a medianoche (They crossed the bridge at midnight).

To cross over/traverse: Used for longer journeys, for example Cruzó el desierto en tres días (He/she crossed the desert in three days).

Examples

Examples of Cruzar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Crucé la calle con mucho cuidado. (I crossed the street very carefully.)

El atleta cruzó la meta en primer lugar. (The athlete crossed the finish line in first place.)

Cruzaste el puente a pie. (You crossed the bridge on foot.)

Cruzamos el río en canoa. (We crossed the river by canoe.)

Los viajeros cruzaron la frontera al amanecer. (The travelers crossed the border at dawn.)

Crucé el parque para llegar más rápido. (I crossed the park to get there faster.)

El barco cruzó el océano en diez días. (The ship crossed the ocean in ten days.)

Cruzaste el desierto en tiempo récord. (You crossed the desert in record time.)

Cruzamos el bosque durante la excursión. (We crossed the forest during the hike.)

Las aves cruzaron el cielo en formación. (The birds crossed the sky in formation.)

Crucé mis brazos en señal de desaprobación. (I crossed my arms in disapproval.)

El tren cruzó el túnel en la montaña. (The train crossed the tunnel in the mountain.)

Cruzaste la línea cuando me mentiste. (You crossed the line when you lied to me.)

Cruzamos miradas durante la reunión. (We exchanged glances during the meeting.)

Los estudiantes cruzaron el campus corriendo. (The students crossed the campus running.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Cruzar (to cross) 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.