practicar Preterite Conjugation
practicar — to practice
The preterite of practicar includes a spelling change in the 'yo' form (practiqué) to keep the 'k' sound.
practicar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use this tense to talk about a specific time you practiced a sport, instrument, or skill in the past where the action is finished.
Notes on practicar in the Preterite
This verb is a 'car' verb. In the 'yo' form, the 'c' changes to 'qu' before the 'é' to maintain the hard 'k' sound. All other forms are regular.
Example Sentences
Ayer practiqué piano por dos horas.
Yesterday I practiced piano for two hours.
yo
¿Practicaste fútbol el sábado pasado?
Did you practice soccer last Saturday?
tú
Ellos practicaron mucho para el examen.
They practiced a lot for the exam.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: yo practicé
Correct: yo practiqué
Why: In Spanish, 'cé' would sound like 'say'. To keep the 'k' sound from the original verb, we use 'qué'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: practico
Practicar is a regular -ar verb in the present tense: practico, practicas, practica, etc.
Imperfect
yo: practicaba
The imperfect of practicar is regular: practicaba, practicabas, practicaba, practicábamos, practicabais, practicaban.
Future
yo: practicaré
The future of practicar is formed by adding endings to the infinitive: practicaré, practicarás, practicará.
Conditional
yo: practicaría
The conditional uses the infinitive 'practicar' plus endings: practicaría, practicarías, practicaría.
Present Subjunctive
yo: practique
The present subjunctive of practicar uses 'qu' in all forms: practique, practiques, practique, etc.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: practicara
The imperfect subjunctive is built from the 'ellos' preterite: practicara, practicaras, practicara.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: practica
Use 'practica' (tú) or 'practique' (usted) to give direct orders to practice.
Negative Imperative
yo: no practiques
Negative commands always use the subjunctive: no practiques, no practique, no practiquemos.