abortar Preterite Conjugation
abortar — to abort
Preterite forms like 'aborté' (yo) and 'abortaron' (ellos) mark completed actions like aborting a mission.
abortar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite tense for actions that were completed at a specific point in the past. For 'abortar,' this means indicating that a mission, a plan, or a pregnancy was definitively aborted at a certain time.
Notes on abortar in the Preterite
'Abortar' is a regular -ar verb in the preterite tense. The conjugations follow the standard pattern: -é, -aste, -ó, -amos, -asteis, -aron.
Example Sentences
Ayer aborté el intento de contactarlos.
Yesterday I aborted the attempt to contact them.
yo
¿Abortaste la llamada porque estabas ocupado?
Did you abort the call because you were busy?
tú
La empresa abortó el proyecto el mes pasado.
The company aborted the project last month.
él/ella/usted
Los pilotos abortaron el despegue debido al mal tiempo.
The pilots aborted the takeoff due to bad weather.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite for a single, completed action.
Correct: Saying 'Ayer abortaba el proyecto' is incorrect. Use 'Ayer aborté el proyecto'.
Why: The preterite is for completed past actions, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting accents on 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted' forms.
Correct: The forms are 'aborté' and 'abortó', not 'aborté' and 'abortó'.
Why: Accents are crucial for pronunciation and distinguishing forms in the preterite.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: aborto
Present tense forms like 'aborto' (yo) and 'aborta' (él/ella/usted) describe current actions or habits.
Imperfect
yo: abortaba
Imperfect forms like 'abortaba' (yo) describe past ongoing or habitual actions of aborting.
Future
yo: abortaré
Future forms like 'abortaré' (yo) and 'abortarán' (ellos) indicate actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: abortaría
Conditional forms like 'abortaría' (yo) express hypotheticals ('would abort').
Present Subjunctive
yo: aborte
Use present subjunctive forms like 'aborte' (yo/él/ella/usted) and 'aborten' (ustedes) after expressions of doubt or desire.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: abortara
Use imperfect subjunctive forms like 'abortara' or 'abortase' for past hypotheticals or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: aborta
Use imperative forms like 'aborta' (tú) and 'aborten' (ustedes) for direct commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no abortes
Negative commands like 'no abortes' (tú) and 'no aborten' (ustedes) use the present subjunctive.