traer Preterite Conjugation
traer — to bring
The preterite of traer uses a 'j' stem (traj-) and irregular endings: traje, trajiste, trajo, trajimos, trajisteis, trajeron.
traer Preterite Forms
When to Use the Preterite
Use the preterite when you brought something at a specific moment in the past, like a gift to a party or a suitcase on a trip.
Notes on traer in the Preterite
Traer is highly irregular here. It uses a 'j' stem (traj-) and the third-person plural ends in -eron, not -ieron.
Example Sentences
Te traje un café de la oficina.
I brought you a coffee from the office.
yo
Ellos trajeron mucha comida a la fiesta.
They brought a lot of food to the party.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
¿Trajiste las llaves del coche?
Did you bring the car keys?
tú
Common Mistakes
Mistake: trajeron
Correct: trajeron
Why: Learners often say 'trajeron' correctly but try to write 'trajeron' as 'trajeron'—wait, the error is often adding an 'i' like 'trajeron' vs 'trajeron'. The mistake is 'trajeron' (incorrect: 'trajeron' is correct; incorrect is 'trajeron'). Actually, the common error is 'trajieron'.
Mistake: trajieron
Correct: trajeron
Why: With 'j' stems in the preterite, the 'i' in the third-person plural ending -ieron is dropped.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: traigo
Traer is a 'yo-go' verb (traigo), but otherwise follows regular -er patterns.
Imperfect
yo: traía
The imperfect of traer is regular: traía, traías, traía, traíamos, traíais, traían.
Future
yo: traeré
The future of traer is regular: traeré, traerás, traerá, traeremos, traeréis, traerán.
Conditional
yo: traería
The conditional of traer is regular: traería, traerías, traería, traeríamos, traeríais, traerían.
Present Subjunctive
yo: traiga
The present subjunctive uses the 'traig-' stem: traiga, traigas, traiga, traigamos, traigáis, traigan.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: trajera
The imperfect subjunctive uses the 'traj-' stem: trajera, trajeras, trajera, trajéramos, trajerais, trajeran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: trae
Commands for traer: trae (tú), traiga (usted), traigamos (nosotros), traed (vosotros), traigan (ustedes).
Negative Imperative
yo: no traigas
Negative commands use 'no' + present subjunctive: no traigas, no traiga, no traigamos, no traigáis, no traigan.