motivar Preterite Conjugation
motivar — to motivate
The preterite of motivar is regular: motivé, motivaste, motivó, motivamos, motivasteis, motivaron.
motivar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite for completed actions in the past. If you motivated someone at a specific point or for a specific duration that ended, this is your tense. For example, 'La charla motivó a los empleados' means 'The talk motivated the employees'.
Notes on motivar in the Preterite
Motivar is a regular -ar verb, so all its preterite forms are regular. Remember that the 'nosotros' form 'motivamos' is identical to the present indicative; context will clarify which tense is meant.
Example Sentences
Ayer, la música me motivó a hacer ejercicio.
Yesterday, the music motivated me to exercise.
él/ella/usted
Tú me motivaste mucho con tu ejemplo.
You motivated me a lot with your example.
tú
Nos motivamos para el examen final.
We motivated ourselves for the final exam.
nosotros
Ellos motivaron a la audiencia con su presentación.
They motivated the audience with their presentation.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite for a completed action.
Correct: Say 'La película me motivó' (I watched it, it motivated me) not 'La película me motivaba' (It was motivating me over time or habitually).
Why: Preterite is for single, completed events; imperfect is for ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Missing the accent on the 'yo' form.
Correct: The correct form is 'motivé'.
Why: The accent on the 'é' is crucial to indicate the preterite tense for the first person singular.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: motivo
The present indicative of motivar (motivo, motivas, motiva, motivamos, motiváis, motivan) describes current actions, habits, or general truths.
Imperfect
yo: motivaba
The imperfect of motivar (motivaba, motivabas, motivaba, motivábamos, motivabais, motivaban) describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Future
yo: motivaré
The future tense of motivar (motivaré, motivarás, motivará, motivaremos, motivaréis, motivarán) expresses actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: motivaría
The conditional of motivar (motivaría, motivarías, motivaría, motivaríamos, motivaríais, motivarían) is used for hypotheticals ('would'), polite requests, and future-in-the-past.
Present Subjunctive
yo: motive
The present subjunctive of motivar (motive, motives, motivemos, motiven, motivéis) is used after expressions of doubt, desire, emotion, or uncertainty.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: motivara
The imperfect subjunctive of motivar (e.g., motivara, motivaras) is used for past hypotheticals, wishes, or suggestions.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: motiva
Commands in the imperative for motivar: motiva (tú), motive (usted), motivemos (nosotros), motiven (ustedes), motivad (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: no motives
Negative commands for motivar use the present subjunctive: no motives (tú), no motive (usted), no motivemos (nosotros), no motiven (ustedes), no motivéis (vosotros).