The preterite of practicar is used to express when someone practiced something at a specific time or for a defined period in the past. For example, when you want to say “I practiced piano for two hours” – “Practiqué piano por dos horas.”
This is a -car spelling-changing verb in the preterite tense. The ‘c’ changes to ‘qu’ before ‘e’ to maintain the same sound, which happens in the yo form (practiqué).
Conjugations
Conjugations of Practicar (to practice) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Yo | practiqué |
| Tú | practicaste |
| Él / Ella / Usted | practicó |
| Nosotros / Nosotras | practicamos |
| Vosotros / Vosotras | practicasteis |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes | practicaron |
Boost Your Memorization with Audio!
We’ve included audio recordings of the the conjugations of Practicar (to practice) in the Preterite (Past) Tense to help you learn faster.
Pro Tip: Play the audio on a loop as you study the chart. This repetition will solidify the correct conjugations in your memory.
Usage of Practicar in the Preterite (Past) Tense
The Preterite of practicar indicates completed practice sessions or implementations.
To practice (completed session): Describes a finished period of practice, for example Practiqué piano por dos horas (I practiced piano for two hours), or Practicaron el discurso (They practiced the speech).
To carry out/perform: Used for performing specific activities, for example Practicaron una cirugía complicada (They performed a complicated surgery).
Examples
Examples of Practicar in the Preterite (Past) Tense
Practiqué piano toda la tarde. (I practiced piano all afternoon.)
¿Practicaste el nuevo vocabulario? (Did you practice the new vocabulary?)
El equipo practicó antes del partido. (The team practiced before the game.)
Practicamos la pronunciación. (We practiced the pronunciation.)
Los actores practicaron sus líneas. (The actors practiced their lines.)
Practiqué mucho para el examen. (I practiced a lot for the exam.)
¿Cuánto tiempo practicaste ayer? (How long did you practice yesterday?)
La banda practicó para el concierto. (The band practiced for the concert.)
Practicamos yoga en la playa. (We practiced yoga on the beach.)
Los estudiantes practicaron el diálogo. (The students practiced the dialogue.)
Practiqué mi discurso varias veces. (I practiced my speech several times.)
¿Dónde practicaste tenis? (Where did you practice tennis?)
El bailarín practicó la coreografía. (The dancer practiced the choreography.)
Practicamos la nueva canción. (We practiced the new song.)
Los médicos practicaron la cirugía. (The doctors practiced the surgery.)
Conjugations with English Translations
Conjugations of Practicar (to practice) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish) with English Translations:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Yo practiqué | I practiced |
| Tú practicaste | You practiced |
| Él / Ella / Usted practicó | He / She / You (formal) practiced |
| Nosotros / Nosotras practicamos | We practiced |
| Vosotros / Vosotras practicasteis | You all practiced |
| Ellos / Ellas / Ustedes practicaron | They / You all (formal) practiced |
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.