conferir Preterite Conjugation
conferir — to grant
The preterite of conferir is a 'slipper' verb: the stem changes e to i only in the third-person forms.
conferir Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite to describe the specific moment a title, degree, or honor was officially granted or bestowed.
Notes on conferir in the Preterite
As a third-conjugation (-ir) stem-changer, it changes e to i in the third-person singular (confirió) and plural (confirieron). Other forms are regular.
Example Sentences
La universidad le confirió el título de doctor honoris causa.
The university granted him an honorary doctorate degree.
él/ella/usted
Ayer les confirieron las medallas a los ganadores.
Yesterday they bestowed the medals upon the winners.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Conferí con mis colegas antes de tomar la decisión.
I conferred with my colleagues before making the decision.
yo
Common Mistakes
Mistake: conferió
Correct: confirió
Why: It is easy to forget the e-to-i stem change in the third-person preterite.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: confiero
The present tense of conferir has a stem change (e to ie) in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Imperfect
yo: confería
The imperfect of conferir is completely regular: confería, conferías, confería, conferíamos, conferíais, conferían.
Future
yo: conferiré
The future tense of conferir is regular: add the endings -é, -ás, -á, -emos, -éis, -án to the infinitive.
Conditional
yo: conferiría
The conditional of conferir is regular: add the endings -ía, -ías, -ía, -íamos, -íais, -ían to the infinitive.
Present Subjunctive
yo: confiera
The present subjunctive of conferir uses a stem change: e to ie in most forms, and e to i in nosotros/vosotros.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: confiriera
The imperfect subjunctive uses the 'confirier-' stem for all forms (e.g., confiriera, confirieras).
Affirmative Imperative
yo: confiere
The imperative uses 'confiere' (tú) and 'confiera' (usted) to command the granting of something.
Negative Imperative
yo: no confieras
The negative imperative always uses the present subjunctive forms (e.g., no confieras, no confiera).