debilitar Preterite Conjugation
debilitar — to weaken
The preterite of debilitar is regular: debilité, debilitaste, debilitó, debilitamos, debilitasteis, debilitaron.
debilitar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite to describe a completed action in the past that has a clear beginning and end. For example, 'El problema debilitó su confianza' means 'The problem weakened his confidence' at a specific point in time.
Notes on debilitar in the Preterite
Debilitar is a regular -ar verb and follows the standard conjugation pattern in the preterite tense. All forms are regular.
Example Sentences
La enfermedad debilitó al atleta.
The illness weakened the athlete.
él/ella/usted
Debilitamos las defensas del enemigo.
We weakened the enemy's defenses.
nosotros
¿Tú debilitaste la señal de radio?
Did you weaken the radio signal?
tú
Ellos debilitaron el acuerdo con sus condiciones.
They weakened the agreement with their conditions.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect indicative instead of the preterite.
Correct: It should be 'El problema debilitó su confianza', not 'El problema debilitaba su confianza'.
Why: The preterite is used for a specific, completed action that affected confidence, while the imperfect would suggest an ongoing or habitual weakening.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the 'yo' form.
Correct: The correct form is 'debilité', not 'debile'.
Why: The accent on the final 'é' is crucial for the 'yo' preterite of -ar verbs to indicate stress and distinguish it from other forms.
Master Spanish verbs in context
Memorizing tables only gets you so far. Read 200+ illustrated and narrated Spanish stories to see verbs like 'debilitar' used naturally — in the tenses you're learning.
Related Tenses
Present
yo: debilito
The present tense of debilitar (debilitó, debilitas, etc.) describes current actions or general truths.
Imperfect
yo: debilitaba
The imperfect of debilitar (debilitaba, debilitabas, etc.) describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Future
yo: debilitaré
The future tense of debilitar (debiliré, debilitarás, etc.) is regular and used for future actions or probability.
Conditional
yo: debilitaría
The conditional of debilitar (debilitaía, debilitarías, etc.) is regular and used for hypotheticals ('would') or polite requests.
Present Subjunctive
yo: debilite
The present subjunctive of debilitar (debilite, debilites, etc.) is used after expressions of doubt, desire, or emotion.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: debilitara
The imperfect subjunctive of debilitar (e.g., debilitara, debilitase) is used for past hypotheticals or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: debilita
The imperative of debilitar is regular in the affirmative tú form: debilita.
Negative Imperative
yo: no debilites
Negative commands for debilitar use the present subjunctive: no debilites, no debilite, etc.