The preterite of quejarse is used to express when someone complained about something at a specific moment in the past. For example, when you want to say “They complained about the service yesterday” – “Se quejaron del servicio ayer.”

This is a regular -ar reflexive verb in the preterite tense. While it follows the regular conjugation pattern, you must remember to include the appropriate reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nos, os, se).

Conjugations

Conjugations of Quejarse (to complain) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Castilian Spanish):

The Preterite of quejarse indicates specific instances of complaining or expressing dissatisfaction.

To complain: Used for specific instances of expressing complaints, for example Me quejé al gerente sobre el servicio (I complained to the manager about the service), or Se quejaron del ruido (They complained about the noise).

To express pain: Describes expressing physical discomfort, for example Se quejó de dolor de cabeza (They complained of a headache).

Examples

Examples of Quejarse in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Me quejé del servicio al gerente. (I complained about the service to the manager.)

Te quejaste del ruido toda la noche. (You complained about the noise all night.)

Se quejó del dolor de espalda. (He/she complained about back pain.)

Nos quejamos de las condiciones de trabajo. (We complained about the working conditions.)

Se quejaron del precio del hotel. (They complained about the hotel price.)

¿Por qué te quejaste con el profesor? (Why did you complain to the teacher?)

Me quejé porque la comida estaba fría. (I complained because the food was cold.)

Se quejó de la demora del vuelo. (He/she complained about the flight delay.)

Nos quejamos al departamento de atención al cliente. (We complained to the customer service department.)

Los vecinos se quejaron del ruido. (The neighbors complained about the noise.)

Te quejaste sin razón. (You complained without reason.)

Se quejó de la calidad del producto. (He/she complained about the product quality.)

Me quejé con el conductor del autobús. (I complained to the bus driver.)

Se quejaron del mal tiempo. (They complained about the bad weather.)

Nos quejamos por el retraso. (We complained about the delay.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Quejarse (to complain) in the Preterite (Past) Tense 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.