The preterite of esperar is used to express when someone waited or hoped for something at a specific time in the past. For example, you might say “I waited for the bus for 30 minutes,” indicating a completed period of waiting.

This is a regular -ar verb that follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern. The conjugations are straightforward and commonly used in everyday Spanish.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Esperar (to wait/hope) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of esperar indicates a completed action of waiting or hoping in the past.

To wait: Describes a specific instance of waiting, for example Esperé dos horas en la fila (I waited two hours in line) or Esperamos hasta que llegó (We waited until he/she arrived).

To hope/expect: Refers to having had a specific hope or expectation, for example Esperé que todo saliera bien (I hoped everything would turn out well).

To anticipate: Used for expecting something to happen, for example No esperé que reaccionara así (I didn’t expect him/her to react that way).

Examples

Examples of Esperar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Esperé más de una hora en la fila. (I waited more than an hour in line.)

¿Cuánto tiempo esperaste el autobús? (How long did you wait for the bus?)

Ella esperó pacientemente su turno. (She waited patiently for her turn.)

Esperamos hasta que dejó de llover. (We waited until it stopped raining.)

Los invitados esperaron en el lobby. (The guests waited in the lobby.)

Esperé tu llamada toda la tarde. (I waited for your call all afternoon.)

¿Por qué no esperaste a tu hermano? (Why didn’t you wait for your brother?)

El doctor esperó los resultados del análisis. (The doctor waited for the test results.)

Esperamos noticias todo el día. (We waited for news all day.)

Los niños esperaron ansiosamente la Navidad. (The children eagerly waited for Christmas.)

Esperé que mejoraras pronto. (I hoped you would get better soon.)

¿Esperaste mucho en el restaurante? (Did you wait long at the restaurant?)

El tren esperó cinco minutos en la estación. (The train waited five minutes at the station.)

Esperamos el momento adecuado. (We waited for the right moment.)

Todos esperaron el gran final. (Everyone waited for the grand finale.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Esperar (to wait/hope) 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.