estrangular Preterite Conjugation
estrangular — to strangle
The preterite of 'estrangular' is regular: estrangulé, estrangulaste, estranguló, estrangulamos, estrangulasteis, estrangularon.
estrangular Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite for completed actions in the past. For 'estrangular', this means the act of strangling happened and finished at a specific point in time.
Notes on estrangular in the Preterite
'Estrangular' is a regular -ar verb and follows the standard preterite conjugation pattern perfectly.
Example Sentences
El actor estranguló a su oponente en la obra.
The actor strangled his opponent in the play.
él/ella/usted
¿Tú estrangulaste la última flor?
Did you strangle the last flower?
tú
Ayer estrangulamos la discusión.
Yesterday we strangled the discussion.
nosotros
Ellos estrangularon el proyecto con burocracia.
They strangled the project with bureaucracy.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite.
Correct: For a single, completed action like 'He strangled him', use the preterite: 'Él lo estranguló'.
Why: The preterite is for finished actions, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on forms like 'estranguló' or 'estrangulé'.
Correct: The accents on the 'yo' and 'él/ella/usted' forms are mandatory: 'estrangulé', 'estranguló'.
Why: These accents mark the stressed syllable and distinguish these forms from other tenses (like the nosotros present 'estrangulamos').
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: estrangulo
The present tense 'estrangulo', 'estrangulas', etc., describes current actions, habits, or general truths.
Imperfect
yo: estrangulaba
The imperfect 'estrangulaba', 'estrangulabas', etc., describes ongoing or habitual past actions, or sets a scene.
Future
yo: estrangularé
The future tense 'estrangularé', 'estrangularás', etc., is used for actions that will happen or to express probability.
Conditional
yo: estrangularía
The conditional 'estrangularía', 'estrangularías', etc., is used for hypotheticals ('would'), polite requests, and future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: estrangule
The present subjunctive 'estrangule', 'estrangles', etc., is used after expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: estrangulara
The imperfect subjunctive of 'estrangular' (estrangulara/estrangularas/etc.) is used for past hypotheticals or polite requests.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: estrangula
Commands for 'estrangular' are mostly regular, with tú 'estrangula' and vosotros 'estrangulad' being the most common.
Negative Imperative
yo: no estrangules
Negative commands for 'estrangular' use the present subjunctive with 'no': no estrangules, no estrangule, etc.