Inklingo
A stern person pointing firmly at a table where they want a document placed.

exigir Preterite Conjugation

exigir — to demand

B1spelling change -ir★★★★★
Quick answer:

Exigir is regular in the preterite: exigí, exigiste, exigió, exigimos, exigisteis, exigieron.

exigir Preterite Forms

yoexigí
túexigiste
él/ella/ustedexigió
nosotrosexigimos
vosotrosexigisteis
ellos/ellas/ustedesexigieron

When to Use the Preterite

Use the preterite to talk about a specific time someone made a demand or when a requirement was officially set in the past.

Notes on exigir in the Preterite

Exigir is completely regular in the preterite. Note that the 'g' stays a 'g' because it is followed by 'i' or 'ie', which naturally keeps the 'h' sound.

Example Sentences

  • El profesor exigió el ensayo ayer.

    The teacher demanded the essay yesterday.

    él/ella/usted

  • Les exigí una explicación por el retraso.

    I demanded an explanation from them for the delay.

    yo

  • Mis padres exigieron que volviera temprano.

    My parents demanded that I return early.

    ellos/ellas/ustedes

Common Mistakes

  • Mistake: Writing 'exijió' with a 'j'.

    Correct: exigió

    Why: The 'g' to 'j' change only happens before 'a' or 'o'. Since the ending starts with 'i', the 'g' stays.

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Related Tenses

Present

yo: exijo

Exigir has a spelling change in the 'yo' form (exijo) to keep the 'h' sound, but is regular otherwise.

Imperfect

yo: exigía

Exigir is regular in the imperfect: exigía, exigías, exigía, exigíamos, exigíais, exigían.

Future

yo: exigiré

Exigir is regular in the future: exigiré, exigirás, exigirá, exigiremos, exigiréis, exigirán.

Conditional

yo: exigiría

Exigir is regular in the conditional: exigiría, exigirías, exigiría, exigiríamos, exigiríais, exigirían.

Present Subjunctive

yo: exija

The present subjunctive of exigir uses a 'j' in all forms: exija, exijas, exija, exijamos, exijáis, exijan.

Imperfect Subjunctive

yo: exigiera

The imperfect subjunctive of exigir uses the stem 'exigier-': exigiera, exigieras, exigiera, exigiéramos, exigierais, exigieran.

Affirmative Imperative

yo: exige

The imperative forms are: exige (tú), exija (usted), exijamos (nosotros), exigid (vosotros), exijan (ustedes).

Negative Imperative

yo: no exijas

All negative commands for exigir use 'j': no exijas, no exija, no exijamos, no exijáis, no exijan.