habló
ah-BLOH
Quick Reference
📝 In Action
Mi hermano habló con el director ayer.
A1My brother spoke with the director yesterday.
¿Qué dijo? Ella solo habló por cinco minutos y se fue.
A2What did she say? She only spoke for five minutes and left.
Usted no habló durante la reunión, ¿está todo bien?
B1You didn't speak during the meeting, is everything alright?
💡 Grammar Points
The Preterite Tense
This form tells you about an action that started and finished completely in the past. Think of it as a single event with clear boundaries, like 'She spoke for an hour.'
Tilde Mark
The accent mark (´) on the 'ó' is crucial! It tells you that the stress falls on the last syllable, and it instantly signals that this is a past tense action.
❌ Common Pitfalls
Mixing up 'I spoke' and 'He/She spoke'
Mistake: "Using 'habló' when you mean 'I spoke'."
Correction: The correct form for 'I spoke' is 'hablé' (with an accent on the E). Remember: I=é, He/She=ó.
Confusing Past tenses
Mistake: "Using 'habló' when describing a repeated or ongoing past action (e.g., 'He used to speak quietly')."
Correction: For ongoing or habitual past actions, use the imperfect: 'hablaba'. Use 'habló' only for a specific, completed event.
⭐ Usage Tips
Always look for the subject
Because the Spanish verb form is so specific, if you see 'habló', you know the speaker must be 'él' (he), 'ella' (she), or 'usted' (formal you).
🔄 Conjugations
indicative
present
imperfect
preterite
subjunctive
present
imperfect
✏️ Quick Practice
💡 Quick Quiz: habló
Question 1 of 2
Which sentence correctly uses 'habló'?
📚 More Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if 'habló' means 'he spoke,' 'she spoke,' or 'you spoke (usted)?'
You need to look at the context of the sentence. Since Spanish often leaves out the subject pronoun, you have to find out who the conversation is about. If the subject is not mentioned, assume it refers to the person or thing last talked about.
Why does 'habló' have an accent mark?
The accent mark is there to make sure you stress the last syllable (a-BLOH). In Spanish, if a verb ends in a vowel in the preterite tense, the third person singular always needs that accent to mark the past tense sound.