soltar Preterite Conjugation
soltar — to let go
The preterite of soltar is regular: solté, soltaste, soltó, soltamos, soltasteis, soltaron.
soltar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite when the act of letting go or releasing something happened at a specific, completed moment in the past, like dropping an object or releasing a bird.
Notes on soltar in the Preterite
Soltar is regular in the preterite. The 'o' does not change to 'ue' in this tense, unlike the present tense.
Example Sentences
Solté las llaves por accidente.
I dropped (let go of) the keys by accident.
yo
Él soltó un suspiro de alivio.
He let out a sigh of relief.
él/ella/usted
Soltamos al perro en el parque.
We let the dog off the leash in the park.
nosotros
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'suelté' instead of 'solté'.
Correct: Solté
Why: Learners often apply the stem change (o>ue) to the preterite, but it only occurs in the present tenses.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: suelto
The present tense of soltar features an o > ue stem change in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Imperfect
yo: soltaba
The imperfect of soltar is regular: soltaba, soltabas, soltaba, soltábamos, soltabais, soltaban.
Future
yo: soltaré
The future tense of soltar is regular: soltaré, soltarás, soltará, soltaremos, soltaréis, soltarán.
Conditional
yo: soltaría
The conditional of soltar is regular: soltaría, soltarías, soltaría, soltaríamos, soltaríais, soltarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: suelte
The present subjunctive of soltar changes o > ue in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: soltara
The imperfect subjunctive of soltar is regular based on the preterite stem: soltara, soltaras, soltara, etc.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: suelta
The imperative of soltar uses 'suelta' (tú) and 'suelte' (usted), following the o > ue stem change.
Negative Imperative
yo: no sueltes
The negative imperative uses 'no' plus the present subjunctive forms: no sueltes, no suelte, no soltemos, etc.