cenar Preterite Conjugation
cenar — to have dinner
The preterite of cenar is regular: cené, cenaste, cenó, cenamos, cenasteis, cenaron.
cenar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite to talk about a specific dinner that happened and finished, such as a meal at a restaurant last night or a holiday dinner.
Notes on cenar in the Preterite
Cenar is regular in the preterite. Note that the nosotros form 'cenamos' is the same as the present tense.
Example Sentences
Anoche cené sushi con mis amigos.
Last night I had sushi for dinner with my friends.
yo
Él cenó muy tarde ayer.
He had dinner very late yesterday.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros cenamos en un restaurante italiano el sábado.
We had dinner at an Italian restaurant on Saturday.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: cenasteis (used in Latin America)
Correct: cenaron
Why: While cenasteis is correct in Spain, learners in Latin America should use cenaron for 'you all'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: ceno
The present tense of cenar is regular: ceno, cenas, cena, cenamos, cenáis, cenan.
Imperfect
yo: cenaba
The imperfect of cenar follows the standard -aba pattern: cenaba, cenabas, cenaba, cenábamos, cenabais, cenaban.
Future
yo: cenaré
The future of cenar uses the infinitive as the stem: cenaré, cenarás, cenará, cenaremos, cenaréis, cenarán.
Conditional
yo: cenaría
The conditional of cenar is regular: cenaría, cenarías, cenaría, cenaríamos, cenaríais, cenarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: cene
The present subjunctive of cenar uses the -e endings: cene, cenes, cene, cenemos, cenéis, cenen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: cenara
The imperfect subjunctive of cenar uses the -ara endings: cenara, cenaras, cenara, cenáramos, cenarais, cenaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: cena
The imperative of cenar gives commands: cena (tú), cenad (vosotros), cene (usted), cenen (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no cenes
The negative imperative of cenar uses the present subjunctive: no cenes, no cene, no cenemos, no cenéis, no cenen.