Inklingo
A soccer referee in a yellow shirt holding up a red card on a green field.

sancionar Preterite Conjugation

sancionarto penalize

B1regular -ar★★★★
Quick answer:

The preterite of sancionar indicates completed past actions: sancioné, sancionaste, sancionó, sancionamos, sancionasteis, sancionaron.

sancionar Preterite Forms

yosancioné
sancionaste
él/ella/ustedsancionó
nosotrossancionamos
vosotrossancionasteis
ellos/ellas/ustedessancionaron

When to Use the Preterite

Use the preterite to talk about an action of penalizing or sanctioning that started and finished at a specific point in the past. For example, when a judge sanctioned someone yesterday.

Notes on sancionar in the Preterite

Sancionar is regular in the preterite. Be mindful that the 'nosotros' form 'sancionamos' is identical to the present indicative, so context is key.

Example Sentences

  • El árbitro sancionó al jugador en el minuto veinte.

    The referee penalized the player in the twentieth minute.

    él/ella/usted

  • Ayer, sancioné al estudiante por copiar.

    Yesterday, I penalized the student for cheating.

    yo

  • ¿Sancionasteis la multa?

    Did you guys sanction the fine?

    vosotros

  • Ellos sancionaron las reglas hace una semana.

    They sanctioned the rules a week ago.

    ellos/ellas/ustedes

  • Nosotros sancionamos la propuesta formalmente.

    We sanctioned the proposal formally.

    nosotros

Common Mistakes

  • Mistake: Using the imperfect instead of the preterite for a single, completed action.

    Correct: For a specific instance of penalizing, use the preterite: 'El comité sancionó...' (not 'sancionaba').

    Why: The preterite marks the completed event, while the imperfect describes ongoing or habitual past actions.

  • Mistake: Forgetting the accent on 'sancionó' (él/ella/usted).

    Correct: The él/ella/usted form requires an accent: 'sancionó'.

    Why: The accent indicates the stressed syllable and distinguishes it from other forms.

Master Spanish verbs in context

Memorizing tables only gets you so far. Read 200+ illustrated and narrated Spanish stories to see verbs like 'sancionar' used naturally — in the tenses you're learning.

Related Tenses

Present

yo: sanciono

The present tense of sancionar describes current actions or general truths: sanciono, sancionas, sanciona, sancionamos, sancionáis, sancionan.

Imperfect

yo: sancionaba

The imperfect of sancionar describes ongoing or habitual past actions: sancionaba, sancionabas, sancionaba, sancionábamos, sancionabais, sancionaban.

Future

yo: sancionaré

The future tense of sancionar indicates future actions: sancionaré, sancionarás, sancionará, sancionaremos, sancionaréis, sancionarán.

Conditional

yo: sancionaría

The conditional of sancionar expresses hypothetical results, polite requests, or future-in-the-past: sancionaría, sancionarías, sancionaría, sancionaríamos, sancionaríais, sancionarían.

Present Subjunctive

yo: sancione

The present subjunctive of sancionar is used for wishes, doubts, emotions, and after impersonal expressions: sancione, sanciones, sancione, sancionemos, sancionen, sancionéis.

Imperfect Subjunctive

yo: sancionara

The imperfect subjunctive of sancionar expresses past hypothetical situations or wishes: sancionara, sancionaras, sancionara, sancionáramos, sancionarais, sancionaran.

Affirmative Imperative

yo: sanciona

The imperative of sancionar gives direct commands: sanciona (tú), sancione (usted), sancionemos (nosotros), sancionen (ustedes), sancionad (vosotros).

Negative Imperative

yo: no sanciones

Negative commands for sancionar use the present subjunctive: no sanciones (tú), no sancione (usted), no sancionemos (nosotros), no sancionen (ustedes), no sancionéis (vosotros).