retirar Preterite Conjugation
retirar — to remove
The preterite of 'retirar' is regular: retiré, retiraste, retiró, retiramos, retirasteis, retiraron, used for completed past actions.
retirar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite tense to describe actions that started and finished at a specific point in the past. For 'retirar', you might say 'Retiré el dinero ayer' (I withdrew the money yesterday) or 'El mes pasado retiraron el producto del mercado' (Last month they withdrew the product from the market).
Notes on retirar in the Preterite
'Retirar' is regular in the preterite indicative. The stem is the full infinitive 'retirar', and the endings are the standard preterite endings for -ar verbs.
Example Sentences
Ayer retiré todo el efectivo del cajero.
Yesterday I withdrew all the cash from the ATM.
yo
¿Retiraste tu coche del aparcamiento?
Did you move your car from the parking lot?
tú
El gobierno retiró la propuesta.
The government withdrew the proposal.
él/ella/usted
Los soldados retiraron sus armas.
The soldiers laid down their weapons.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using the imperfect tense for a completed action.
Correct: Use 'retiré' for a single completed action, not 'retiraba'.
Why: The preterite marks a completed event, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.
Mistake: Forgetting the accent on the 'yo' form.
Correct: The correct form is 'retiré' with an accent on the 'é'.
Why: The accent distinguishes the preterite 'yo' form from other similar forms and marks the stress.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: retiro
The present tense of 'retirar' is regular: retiro, retiras, retira, retiramos, retiráis, retiran, used for current or habitual actions.
Imperfect
yo: retiraba
The imperfect tense of 'retirar' is regular: retiraba, retirabas, retiraba, retirábamos, retirabais, retiraban, used for ongoing or habitual past actions.
Future
yo: retiraré
The future tense of 'retirar' is regular: retiraré, retirarás, retirará, retiraremos, retiraréis, retirarán, used for actions that will happen.
Conditional
yo: retiraría
The conditional of 'retirar' is regular: retiraría, retirarías, retiraría, retiraríamos, retiraríais, retirarían, used for hypotheticals and polite requests.
Present Subjunctive
yo: retire
The present subjunctive of 'retirar' is 'retire' (yo/usted), 'retires' (tú), 'retiremos' (nosotros), 'retiréis' (vosotros), 'retiren' (ustedes), used after expressions of doubt, desire, or emotion.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: retirara
The imperfect subjunctive of 'retirar' has two forms: 'retirara/retirase' and 'retiraras/retirases', used for past hypotheticals or wishes.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: retira
Use 'retira' (tú), 'retire' (usted), 'retiren' (ustedes), 'retirad' (vosotros), or 'retiremos' (nosotros) for direct commands.
Negative Imperative
yo: no retires
Use 'no retires' (tú), 'no retire' (usted), 'no retiren' (ustedes), 'no retiréis' (vosotros), or 'no retiremos' (nosotros) for negative commands.