donar Preterite Conjugation
donar — to donate
The preterite of 'donar' (doné, donaste, etc.) marks completed actions of donating in the past.
donar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite for specific, completed acts of donating. For example, 'Ayer doné 50 euros' (Yesterday I donated 50 euros) or 'La organización donó medicinas el mes pasado' (The organization donated medicine last month). It's about the action happening and finishing at a point in time.
Notes on donar in the Preterite
'Donar' is a regular -ar verb in the preterite tense. All the forms follow the standard pattern: -é, -aste, -ó, -amos, -asteis, -aron.
Example Sentences
Yo doné sangre la semana pasada.
I donated blood last week.
yo
¿Tú donaste algo para el refugio?
Did you donate something for the shelter?
tú
Él donó su colección de sellos.
He donated his stamp collection.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros donamos ropa en Navidad.
We donated clothes at Christmas.
nosotros
Ellos donaron mucho dinero al hospital.
They donated a lot of money to the hospital.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of preterite for a single donation event.
Correct: Use 'doné' for a one-time donation, not 'donaba'.
Why: The preterite is for completed actions with a clear beginning and end, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'donó' and 'doné'.
Correct: The forms for él/ella/usted ('donó') and yo ('doné') require accents.
Why: The accent marks the stressed syllable and distinguishes these forms.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: dono
The present tense of 'donar' (dono, donas, etc.) describes habitual or current acts of donating.
Imperfect
yo: donaba
The imperfect of 'donar' (donaba, donabas, etc.) describes ongoing or habitual donating in the past.
Future
yo: donaréis
The future tense of 'donar' (donaré, donarás, etc.) expresses what will happen.
Conditional
yo: donaría
The conditional of 'donar' (donaría, donarías, etc.) expresses hypotheticals like 'would donate'.
Present Subjunctive
yo: done
The present subjunctive of 'donar' (done, dones, etc.) is used for wishes, doubts, emotions, and impersonal expressions.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: donara
The imperfect subjunctive of 'donar' (donara, donaras, etc.) expresses past wishes, doubts, or hypothetical situations.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: dona
Use 'dona', 'done', 'donen', 'donemos', 'donad' for direct commands with 'donar'.
Negative Imperative
yo: no dones
Negative commands use 'no' + present subjunctive: 'no dones', 'no done', 'no donen', 'no donemos', 'no donéis'.