The preterite of suponer is used to express when someone supposed or assumed something at a specific moment in the past. For example, you might say “I supposed he was right about that,” indicating a completed thought.

This is an irregular verb in the preterite tense, using the stem ‘supus-‘ instead of ‘supon-‘. This creates a unique conjugation pattern that must be memorized.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Suponer (to suppose) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

The preterite of suponer expresses a completed assumption or supposition made in the past.

To suppose/assume: Describes making a specific assumption, for example Supuse que vendría tarde (I supposed he/she would come late) or Supusimos que algo había pasado (We assumed something had happened).

To imply/involve: Refers to something entailing consequences, for example Eso supuso un gran cambio en mi vida (That meant/involved a big change in my life).

Examples

Examples of Suponer in the Preterite (Past) Tense

Supuse que llegarías tarde. (I supposed you would arrive late.)

¿Qué supusiste que pasó? (What did you suppose happened?)

Ella supuso la verdad inmediatamente. (She supposed the truth immediately.)

Supusimos que algo andaba mal. (We supposed something was wrong.)

Todos supusieron lo peor. (Everyone supposed the worst.)

Supuse que estarías aquí. (I supposed you would be here.)

¿Por qué supusiste eso de mí? (Why did you suppose that about me?)

El detective supuso correctamente. (The detective supposed correctly.)

Supusimos que era la mejor opción. (We supposed it was the best option.)

Los expertos supusieron las consecuencias. (The experts supposed the consequences.)

Supuse que necesitarías ayuda. (I supposed you would need help.)

¿Qué supusiste al verme? (What did you suppose when you saw me?)

El médico supuso el diagnóstico. (The doctor supposed the diagnosis.)

Supusimos que vendría más gente. (We supposed more people would come.)

Los científicos supusieron una explicación. (The scientists supposed an explanation.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Suponer (to suppose) in the Preterite (Past) Tense tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian 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.