declarar Preterite Conjugation
declarar — declare
The preterite of declarar is regular: declaré, declaraste, declaró, declaramos, declarasteis, declararon.
declarar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite tense to talk about completed actions in the past that have a clear beginning and end. For 'declarar,' this means a specific instance of declaring something at a certain point in time.
Notes on declarar in the Preterite
Declarar is regular in the preterite tense. The stem 'declar-' is used with the standard preterite endings for -ar verbs.
Example Sentences
Ayer declaré mi amor por ella.
Yesterday I declared my love for her.
yo
¿Declaraste tus compras?
Did you declare your purchases?
tú
El rey declaró la guerra.
The king declared war.
él/ella/usted
Declaramos la independencia en 1810.
We declared independence in 1810.
nosotros
Ellos declararon su inocencia.
They declared their innocence.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite.
Correct: For a single, completed action like declaring something once, use the preterite: 'Declaré', not 'Declaraba'.
Why: The preterite marks a finished event, whereas the imperfect suggests duration or repetition in the past.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the 'yo' form.
Correct: The 'yo' preterite form is 'declaré', with an accent on the final 'é'.
Why: The accent is crucial for distinguishing the 'yo' preterite from other forms and marks the stress.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: declaro
The present indicative of declarar is regular: declaro, declaras, declara, declaramos, declaráis, declaran.
Imperfect
yo: declaraba
The imperfect of declarar is regular: declaraba, declarabas, declaraba, declarábamos, declarabais, declaraban.
Future
yo: declararé
The future tense of declarar (declararé) is regular and used for definite future actions or probabilities.
Conditional
yo: declararía
The conditional of declarar is regular: declararía, declararías, declararía, declararíamos, declararíais, declararían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: declare
The present subjunctive of declarar (declare) is used for wishes, doubts, and influencing others.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: declarara
The imperfect subjunctive of declarar (declarara/declarase) is used for past hypotheticals or softer requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: declara
Imperative commands for declarar are mostly regular: declara, declare, declaremos, declarad, declaren.
Negative Imperative
yo: no declares
Negative commands for 'declarar' use 'no' plus the present subjunctive: no declares, no declare, no declaremos, no declaréis, no declaren.