ensuciar Preterite Conjugation
ensuciar — to dirty
The preterite of 'ensuciar' is regular: ensucié, ensuciaste, ensució, ensuciamos, ensuciasteis, ensuciaron.
ensuciar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite for actions that were completed in the past at a specific moment or within a defined period. Think of it as a snapshot of a finished event.
Notes on ensuciar in the Preterite
Ensuciar is regular in the preterite. The nosotros form 'ensuciamos' is identical to the present tense; context will clarify which is meant.
Example Sentences
Ayer ensucié mis zapatos nuevos en el barro.
Yesterday I dirtied my new shoes in the mud.
yo
¿Ensuciaste la camisa mientras comías?
Did you dirty the shirt while you were eating?
tú
El niño ensució la pared con crayones.
The child dirtied the wall with crayons.
él/ella/usted
Los perros ensuciaron el sofá.
The dogs dirtied the sofa.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite for a single completed action.
Correct: For 'I dirtied the shirt yesterday', use 'ensucié', not 'ensuciaba'.
Why: The preterite marks a specific, finished event, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'yo' and 'tú' forms.
Correct: It's 'ensucié' and 'ensuciaste', not 'ensucie' and 'ensuciaste'.
Why: The accents are crucial for distinguishing these preterite forms and indicating stress.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: ensucio
The present tense of 'ensuciar' is regular: ensucio, ensucias, ensucia, ensuciamos, ensuciáis, ensucian.
Imperfect
yo: ensuciaba
The imperfect of 'ensuciar' is regular: ensuciaba, ensuciabas, ensuciaba, ensuciábamos, ensuciabais, ensuciaban.
Future
yo: ensuciaré
The future tense of 'ensuciar' is regular: ensuciaré, ensuciarás, ensuciará, ensuciaremos, ensuciaréis, ensuciarán.
Conditional
yo: ensuciaría
The conditional of 'ensuciar' is regular: ensuciaría, ensuciarías, ensuciaría, ensuciaríamos, ensuciaríais, ensuciarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: ensucie
The present subjunctive of 'ensuciar' is: ensucie (yo/usted), ensucies (tú), ensuciemos (nosotros), ensuciéis (vosotros), ensucien (ellos/ustedes).
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: ensuciara
The imperfect subjunctive of 'ensuciar' has two forms for each person, like ensuciara/ensuciara and ensuciarais/ensuciarais.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: ensucia
Affirmative commands for 'ensuciar' are: ensucia (tú), ensucie (usted), ensuciemos (nosotros), ensucien (ustedes), ensuciad (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: no ensucies
Negative commands for 'ensuciar' use the present subjunctive: no ensucies (tú), no ensucie (usted), no ensuciemos (nosotros), no ensucien (ustedes), no ensuciéis (vosotros).