invocar Preterite Conjugation
invocar — to invoke
The preterite of invocar is regular except for the 'yo' form (invoqué), which uses a 'qu' to preserve the sound.
invocar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite for a specific instance where someone invoked a rule, a name, or a spirit at a definite point in time.
Notes on invocar in the Preterite
Only the 'yo' form is irregular (invoqué). All other forms (invocaste, invocó, etc.) are regular -ar preterite endings.
Example Sentences
Ayer invoqué mi derecho a una llamada.
Yesterday I invoked my right to a phone call.
yo
El abogado invocó un precedente legal muy antiguo.
The lawyer invoked a very old legal precedent.
él/ella/usted
Invocamos a los ancestros durante la ceremonia.
We invoked the ancestors during the ceremony.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: invocé
Correct: invoqué
Why: The letter 'c' before 'e' sounds like 's'. To keep the 'k' sound from 'invocar', you must change 'c' to 'qu'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: invoco
The present tense of invocar is completely regular: invoco, invocas, invoca, invocamos, invocáis, invocan.
Imperfect
yo: invocaba
The imperfect of invocar is regular: invocaba, invocabas, invocaba, invocábamos, invocabais, invocaban.
Future
yo: invocaré
The future of invocar is regular: add endings to the full infinitive (invocaré, invocarás).
Conditional
yo: invocaría
The conditional of invocar is regular: add -ía endings to the infinitive (invocaría, invocarías).
Present Subjunctive
yo: invoque
The present subjunctive of invocar features a c-to-qu spelling change (invoque, invoques) to keep the hard 'k' sound.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: invocara
The imperfect subjunctive follows the preterite stem (invocara, invocaras) and describes hypothetical or past invocations.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: invoca
The imperative uses 'invoca' (tú) and 'invoque' (usted) to give direct commands to invoke something.
Negative Imperative
yo: no invoques
The negative imperative uses the present subjunctive forms: no invoques, no invoque.