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Conjugation Chart

“Negar” (to deny) in the Preterite (Past) Tense

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Understanding the Preterite (Past) Tense of “Negar”

The preterite of negar is used to express when you denied something at a specific moment in the past. For example, when you want to say “He denied the accusations yesterday” – “Él negó las acusaciones ayer.”

This verb follows the -gar spelling-changing pattern in the preterite tense. The ‘g’ changes to ‘gu’ before ‘e’ to maintain the same sound, which occurs in the yo form (negué).

How to Use Negar in the Preterite (Past) Tense

The Preterite of negar expresses specific instances of denial or refusal.

To deny/refuse: Used for refusing or denying something specific, for example Negué todas las acusaciones (I denied all the accusations), or Me negaron el permiso (They denied me permission).

To reject/turn down: Indicates refusing an offer or request, for example Se negó a participar (He refused to participate).

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

Me negué a participar en el fraude. (I refused to participate in the fraud.)

Te negaste a escuchar razones. (You refused to listen to reason.)

Se negó a firmar el contrato. (He/she refused to sign the contract.)

Nos negamos a pagar el sobreprecio. (We refused to pay the surcharge.)

Se negaron a trabajar horas extras. (They refused to work overtime.)

Negué todas las acusaciones. (I denied all the accusations.)

Negaste haberlo visto. (You denied having seen it.)

El testigo negó conocer al acusado. (The witness denied knowing the accused.)

Negamos cualquier implicación. (We denied any involvement.)

Negaron el permiso de construcción. (They denied the construction permit.)

Me negué a cambiar de opinión. (I refused to change my mind.)

Te negaste a pedir ayuda. (You refused to ask for help.)

El banco negó el préstamo. (The bank denied the loan.)

Nos negamos a rendirnos. (We refused to give up.)

Se negaron a dar explicaciones. (They refused to give explanations.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Negar (to deny) 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.