Introduction
Introducción
Also known as the simple past tense, the Spanish preterite tense describes actions that took place in the past and were completed in the past.
It is often confused with the imperfect tense, which describes on going, past events.
The examples below illustrate the difference with the verb comer (to eat):
Preterite
Él comió He ate.
Imperfect Él comia. He was eating.
It is often confused with the imperfect tense, which describes on going, past events.
The examples below illustrate the difference with the verb comer (to eat):
Preterite
Él comió He ate.
Imperfect Él comia. He was eating.