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Conjugation Chart

“Perder” (to lose) in the Preterite (Past) Tense

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Understanding the Preterite (Past) Tense of “Perder”

The preterite of perder is used to express when something was lost at a specific moment in the past. For example, “I lost my keys yesterday” – “Perdí mis llaves ayer.”

This verb follows the regular -er 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 Perder in the Preterite (Past) Tense

The Preterite of perder expresses completed actions of losing.

To lose: Indicates when something was lost, for example Perdí mi teléfono (I lost my phone), or Perdieron el partido (They lost the game).

To miss: Used for missing transportation or opportunities, for example Perdí el tren (I missed the train).

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

Perdí el último tren a casa. (I missed the last train home.)

El equipo perdió el partido final. (The team lost the final match.)

¿Dónde perdiste las llaves? (Where did you lose the keys?)

Perdimos el vuelo por el tráfico. (We missed the flight due to traffic.)

Los estudiantes perdieron la clase. (The students missed the class.)

Perdí mi billetera en el metro. (I lost my wallet on the subway.)

¿Por qué perdiste la oportunidad? (Why did you lose the opportunity?)

El barco perdió el rumbo en la tormenta. (The ship lost its way in the storm.)

Perdimos el contacto hace años. (We lost contact years ago.)

Los excursionistas perdieron el sendero. (The hikers lost the trail.)

Perdí la paciencia con la situación. (I lost my patience with the situation.)

Perdiste mucho tiempo en el teléfono. (You wasted a lot of time on the phone.)

El avión perdió altura rápidamente. (The plane lost altitude quickly.)

Perdimos la señal del GPS. (We lost the GPS signal.)

Los árboles perdieron sus hojas en otoño. (The trees lost their leaves in autumn.)

Conjugation Chart with English Translations

Conjugations of Perder (to lose) 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.