sonar Preterite Conjugation
sonar — to ring
The preterite of sonar is regular: soné, sonaste, sonó, sonamos, sonasteis, sonaron.
sonar Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite when a sound happened at a specific moment in the past, such as a phone ringing once or an alarm going off at a set time.
Notes on sonar in the Preterite
Sonar is completely regular in the preterite. Unlike the present tense, there is no 'o' to 'ue' stem change here.
Example Sentences
El teléfono sonó tres veces.
The phone rang three times.
él/ella/usted
Soné la campana para avisar a todos.
I rang the bell to warn everyone.
yo
¿Sonaste la alarma esta mañana?
Did you sound the alarm this morning?
tú
Common Mistakes
Mistake: Using 'suenó' instead of 'sonó'.
Correct: sonó
Why: Learners often try to carry the stem change from the present tense into the preterite, but sonar is regular in this tense.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: sueno
Sonar is a stem-changing verb where the 'o' becomes 'ue' in all forms except nosotros and vosotros.
Imperfect
yo: sonaba
The imperfect of sonar is regular: sonaba, sonabas, sonaba, sonábamos, sonabais, sonaban.
Future
yo: sonaré
The future of sonar is regular: sonaré, sonarás, sonará, sonaremos, sonaréis, sonarán.
Conditional
yo: sonaría
The conditional of sonar is regular: sonaría, sonarías, sonaría, sonaríamos, sonaríais, sonarían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: suene
The present subjunctive of sonar features the o > ue stem change: suene, suenes, suene, sonemos, sonéis, suenen.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: sonara
The imperfect subjunctive of sonar is regular: sonara, sonaras, sonara, sonáramos, sonarais, sonaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: ¡Suena!
Use the imperative to command someone to make something sound: ¡suena! (tú), ¡suene! (usted), ¡sonad! (vosotros).
Negative Imperative
yo: ¡No suenes!
The negative imperative uses the present subjunctive forms: no suenes, no suene, no sonemos, no sonéis, no suenen.