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Conjugation Chart of “Encontrar” (to find) in the Preterite (Past) Tense

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Understanding the Preterite (Past) Tense of “Encontrar”

The preterite of encontrar is used to express when someone found something at a specific moment in the past. For example, “I found my lost wallet this morning” – “Encontré mi cartera perdida esta mañana.”

This verb follows the regular -ar conjugation pattern in the preterite tense. Despite being a stem-changing verb in the present tense, it follows regular patterns in the preterite.

How to Use Encontrar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

The Preterite of encontrar indicates completed actions of finding.

To find: Used for locating something, for example Encontré las llaves (I found the keys), or Encontraron la solución (They found the solution).

To meet by chance: Describes unexpected encounters, for example Me encontré con un amigo (I ran into a friend).

Real Life Examples of Encontrar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Encontré las llaves perdidas en el jardín. (I found the lost keys in the garden.)

¿Dónde encontraste ese libro tan interesante? (Where did you find that interesting book?)

Encontró trabajo en una empresa internacional. (He/she found work at an international company.)

Encontramos un restaurante excelente por casualidad. (We found an excellent restaurant by chance.)

Los investigadores encontraron nueva evidencia. (The investigators found new evidence.)

¿Encontraste lo que buscabas? (Did you find what you were looking for?)

Por fin encontré la solución al problema. (I finally found the solution to the problem.)

Encontramos a nuestros amigos en el centro comercial. (We found our friends at the mall.)

Encontraron un tesoro antiguo durante la excavación. (They found an ancient treasure during the excavation.)

No encontré mi celular por ninguna parte. (I didn’t find my cell phone anywhere.)

Encontraste una manera muy creativa de resolver esto. (You found a very creative way to solve this.)

Se encontró con su viejo amigo en el aeropuerto. (He/she ran into their old friend at the airport.)

Encontramos muchas dificultades en el camino. (We encountered many difficulties along the way.)

Encontraron la inspiración en la naturaleza. (They found inspiration in nature.)

Encontré mi vocación cuando empecé a enseñar. (I found my calling when I started teaching.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Encontrar (to find) in the Preterite (Past) 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.