provocar Preterite Conjugation
provocar — to cause
The preterite of provocar is regular except for the 'yo' form, which changes 'c' to 'qu': provoqué.
provocar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite to describe a specific moment in the past when something triggered or caused a reaction.
Notes on provocar in the Preterite
Only the 'yo' form is irregular (provoqué). This spelling change ensures the hard 'k' sound is preserved before the 'é'.
Example Sentences
Yo provoqué el error sin querer.
I caused the error by mistake.
yo
La lluvia provocó muchas inundaciones.
The rain caused many floods.
él/ella/usted
Tus palabras provocaron una gran alegría.
Your words caused a lot of joy.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Writing 'provocé' for the yo form.
Correct: provoqué
Why: In Spanish, 'cé' is pronounced like 'sé'. To keep the 'k' sound from 'pro-vo-car', you must use 'qu'.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: provoco
The present tense of provocar is entirely regular: provoco, provocas, provoca, provocamos, provocáis, provocan.
Imperfect
yo: provocaba
The imperfect of provocar is regular: provocaba, provocabas, provocaba, provocábamos, provocabais, provocaban.
Future
yo: provocaré
The future tense of provocar is regular: provocaré, provocarás, provocará, provocaremos, provocaréis, provocarán.
Conditional
yo: provocaría
The conditional of provocar is regular: provocaría, provocarías, provocaría, provocaríamos, provocaríais, provocarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: provoque
The present subjunctive of provocar requires a spelling change from 'c' to 'qu' in all forms: provoque, provoques, provoque, provoquemos, provoquéis, provoquen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: provocara
The imperfect subjunctive of provocar is formed from the third-person plural preterite: provocara, provocaras, provocara, provocáramos, provocarais, provocaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: provoca
The imperative of provocar uses the spelling change 'qu' for formal commands: provoca (tú), provoque (usted), provoquen (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no provoques
The negative imperative of provocar always uses the 'qu' spelling change: no provoques, no provoque, no provoquemos, no provoquen.