encarcelar Preterite Conjugation
encarcelar — to imprison
The preterite of encarcelar is regular: encarcelé, encarcelaste, encarceló, encarcelamos, encarcelasteis, encarcelaron.
encarcelar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite of encarcelar to talk about a specific, completed act of imprisonment in the past. For example, 'The judge imprisoned the criminal yesterday' or 'They imprisoned the rebels last week.' It emphasizes the action as a whole, finished event.
Notes on encarcelar in the Preterite
Encarcelar is a regular -ar verb and follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern perfectly. There are no stem changes or spelling irregularities.
Example Sentences
Ayer, el juez encarceló al sospechoso.
Yesterday, the judge imprisoned the suspect.
él/ella/usted
Nosotros encarcelamos a los ladrones la semana pasada.
We imprisoned the thieves last week.
nosotros
¿Tú encarcelaste a alguien sin motivo?
Did you imprison someone without reason?
tú
Ellos encarcelaron a los prisioneros después de la fuga.
They imprisoned the prisoners after the escape.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect 'encarcelaba' when the action was a single, completed event.
Correct: Use the preterite 'encarceló' for a specific past action.
Why: The preterite marks completed actions, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the 'yo' form, writing 'encarcéle' instead of 'encarcelé'.
Correct: The accent for the yo form is on the final 'é': 'encarcelé'.
Why: The accent differentiates the 'yo' preterite form and indicates the stress.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: encarcielo
The present tense of encarcelar means 'to imprison' or 'is imprisoning,' like 'Yo encarcielo' (I imprison).
Imperfect
yo: encarcelaba
The imperfect of encarcelar describes ongoing or habitual past imprisonment, like 'Yo encarcelaba' (I used to imprison).
Future
yo: encarcelaré
The future tense of encarcelar indicates future actions, like 'Yo encarcelaré' (I will imprison).
Conditional
yo: encarcelaría
The conditional of encarcelar expresses hypothetical actions, like 'Yo encarcelaría' (I would imprison).
Present Subjunctive
yo: encarciele
The present subjunctive of encarcelar is used for wishes, doubts, and emotions, like 'Espero que encarcieles' (I hope you imprison).
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: encarcelara
The imperfect subjunctive of encarcelar expresses past hypotheticals or wishes, like 'si encarcelara' (if I were to imprison).
Affirmative Imperative
yo: encarciela
The imperative of encarcelar has commands like '¡Encarcela!' (you, singular) and '¡Encarcelad!' (you, plural, Spain).
Negative Imperative
yo: no encarcieles
Negative commands with encarcelar use the present subjunctive, like '¡No encarceles!' (you, singular).