despachar Preterite Conjugation
despachar — to serve
The preterite of despachar is regular: despaché, despachaste, despachó, despachamos, despachasteis, despacharon.
despachar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite of 'despachar' to talk about specific, completed actions in the past, like serving a customer at a particular moment or dispatching a package on a certain date. For instance, 'Despaché el pedido ayer' means 'I dispatched the order yesterday.'
Notes on despachar in the Preterite
Despachar is completely regular in the preterite tense. All the forms follow the standard pattern for -ar verbs.
Example Sentences
Despaché el café en cuanto lo pidió.
I served the coffee as soon as he asked for it.
yo
¿Despachaste el correo esta mañana?
Did you dispatch the mail this morning?
tú
Ella despachó a los clientes uno por uno.
She served the customers one by one.
él/ella/usted
Los empleados despacharon la mercancía rápidamente.
The employees dispatched the merchandise quickly.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Nosotros despachamos las órdenes completas.
We dispatched the complete orders.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite for a completed action, e.g., 'Despachaba la comida ayer'.
Correct: For a specific, completed action, use the preterite: 'Despaché la comida ayer.'
Why: The preterite marks a finished event, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the yo form, writing 'despache' instead of 'despaché'.
Correct: The yo form requires an accent: 'despaché'.
Why: The accent on the 'é' indicates the stressed syllable and distinguishes it from other forms.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: despacho
The present indicative of despachar is regular: despacho, despachas, despacha, despachamos, despacháis, despachan.
Imperfect
yo: despachaba
The imperfect of despachar is regular: despachaba, despachabas, despachaba, despachábamos, despachabais, despachaban.
Future
yo: despacharé
The future of despachar is regular: despacharé, despacharás, despachará, despacharemos, despacharéis, despacharán.
Conditional
yo: despacharía
The conditional of despachar is regular: despacharía, despacharías, despacharía, despacharíamos, despacharíais, despacharían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: despache
The present subjunctive of despachar: despache, despaches, despache, despachemos, despachéis, despachen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: despachara
The imperfect subjunctive of despachar (-ra form): despachara, despacharas, despachara, despacháramos, despacharais, despacharan.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: despacha
The imperative of despachar uses specific command forms: despacha (tú), despache (usted), despachemos (nosotros), despachen (ustedes), despachad (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: no despaches
Negative commands for despachar use the present subjunctive: no despaches (tú), no despache (usted), no despachemos (nosotros), no despachen (ustedes), no despachéis (vosotros).