batir Preterite Conjugation
batir — to whisk
The preterite of 'batir' is regular: batí, batiste, batió, batimos, batisteis, batieron.
batir Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite of 'batir' to talk about the action of whisking as a completed event in the past. For example, 'I whisked the eggs this morning' or 'She whisked the sauce for two minutes'.
Notes on batir in the Preterite
'Batir' is a regular -ir verb in the preterite tense. All the forms are predictable.
Example Sentences
Ayer batí la nata hasta que estuvo firme.
Yesterday I whisked the cream until it was firm.
yo
¿Batiste los huevos para la tortilla?
Did you whisk the eggs for the omelet?
tú
Él batió la mezcla con una cuchara.
He whisked the mixture with a spoon.
él/ella/usted
Ellos batieron el chocolate caliente.
They whisked the hot chocolate.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect 'batía' instead of the preterite 'batió' for a completed action.
Correct: For a specific, finished action like 'He whisked the sauce', use 'Él batió', not 'Él batía'.
Why: The preterite marks a single, completed event, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'batió' and 'batí'.
Correct: The forms 'batió' and 'batí' need accents on the 'o' and 'i' respectively.
Why: These accents indicate the stressed syllable and distinguish these forms from other verb conjugations.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: bato
The present tense 'bato', 'bates', 'bate' describes current actions or habits.
Imperfect
yo: batía
The imperfect 'batía' describes ongoing or habitual past whisking actions.
Future
yo: batiré
The future tense 'batiré', 'batirás', 'batirá' indicates actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: batiría
The conditional 'batiría' suggests hypothetical actions ('would whisk').
Present Subjunctive
yo: bata
Use 'bata' (yo/él/ella/usted) or 'batan' (ellos/ellas/ustedes) for wishes, doubts, and emotions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: batiera
The imperfect subjunctive 'batiera' or 'batiese' is used for past hypotheticals or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: bate
Use the imperative 'batir' forms for direct commands like 'bate' (tú) or 'batan' (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no batas
Negative commands like 'no batas' (tú) use the present subjunctive with 'no'.