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Conjugation Chart

“Irse” (to go away/leave) in the Preterite (Past) Tense

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Understanding the Preterite (Past) Tense of “Irse”

The preterite of irse is used to express when someone left or went away at a specific moment in the past. For example, “They left the party at midnight” – “Se fueron de la fiesta a medianoche.”

This is an irregular reflexive verb in the preterite tense. It uses the irregular stem ‘fu-‘ throughout all forms, and requires the appropriate reflexive pronoun (me, te, se, nos, os, se) before each conjugated form.

How to Use Irse in the Preterite (Past) Tense

The Preterite of irse expresses a definitive departure or leaving in the past.

To leave/go away: Used for departures and exits, for example Me fui de la fiesta temprano (I left the party early), or Se fueron sin despedirse (They left without saying goodbye).

To depart permanently: Indicates permanent departures, for example Se fue del país (They left the country).

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

Me fui de la fiesta temprano. (I left the party early.)

¿A qué hora te fuiste ayer? (What time did you leave yesterday?)

Juan se fue sin despedirse. (Juan left without saying goodbye.)

Nos fuimos de vacaciones a la playa. (We went on vacation to the beach.)

Se fueron cuando empezó a llover. (They left when it started raining.)

¿Por qué te fuiste tan rápido? (Why did you leave so quickly?)

Me fui a vivir al extranjero. (I went to live abroad.)

Nos fuimos del restaurante insatisfechos. (We left the restaurant unsatisfied.)

Los invitados se fueron después de medianoche. (The guests left after midnight.)

Me fui a dormir tarde anoche. (I went to bed late last night.)

Te fuiste sin pagar la cuenta. (You left without paying the bill.)

Se fue a trabajar muy temprano. (He/she left for work very early.)

Nos fuimos de la ciudad por el mal tiempo. (We left the city because of the bad weather.)

Se fueron de viaje por tres meses. (They went away for three months.)

Me fui corriendo a la reunión. (I rushed off to the meeting.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Irse (to go away/leave) 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.