destruir Preterite Conjugation
destruir — destroy
The preterite of destruir is irregular, changing the 'i' to 'y' in the third-person forms: destruyó and destruyeron.
destruir Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite to describe a specific event where something was completely destroyed or ruined at a definite point in time.
Notes on destruir in the Preterite
This is a 'y-verb'. In the third-person singular (él/ella) and plural (ellos/ellas), the 'i' between vowels changes to a 'y' to maintain the sound. Also, note the accent on the 'í' in the yo form.
Example Sentences
El huracán destruyó muchas casas el año pasado.
The hurricane destroyed many houses last year.
él/ella/usted
Destruí todos los documentos viejos.
I destroyed all the old documents.
yo
Los soldados destruyeron el puente.
The soldiers destroyed the bridge.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Writing 'destruio' or 'destruieron'.
Correct: destruyó / destruyeron
Why: In Spanish, an unstressed 'i' between two vowels must change to a 'y'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: destruyo
Destruir is a 'y-verb' in the present tense, adding a 'y' before the ending in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Imperfect
yo: destruía
The imperfect of destruir is regular: destruía, destruías, destruía, destruíamos, destruíais, destruían.
Future
yo: destruiré
The future tense of destruir is regular: añadiré las terminaciones al infinitivo.
Conditional
yo: destruiría
The conditional of destruir is regular: destruiría, destruirías, destruiría, destruiríamos, destruiríais, destruirían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: destruya
The present subjunctive of destruir follows the 'y' pattern: destruya, destruyas, destruya, destruyamos, destruyáis, destruyan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: destruyera
The imperfect subjunctive of destruir is based on the third-person preterite: destruyera, destruyeras, destruyera...
Affirmative Imperative
yo: destruye
The imperative of destruir uses 'destruye' (tú) and 'destruya' (usted), following the 'y' spelling change.
Negative Imperative
yo: no destruyas
The negative imperative of destruir uses the present subjunctive: no destruyas, no destruya, no destruyamos...