pusieron
/poo-SYEH-rohn/
they put
They put the block on the tower (physical placement).
pusieron(Verb)
they put
?physical placement
,they placed
?physical placement
you all set (formal)
?physical placement
📝 In Action
Ellos **pusieron** los libros en la mesa hace una hora.
A1They put the books on the table an hour ago.
Mis vecinos **pusieron** luces de Navidad muy temprano.
A2My neighbors put up Christmas lights very early.
💡 Grammar Points
The 'U' in the Past
The verb 'poner' is highly irregular in the simple past (preterite). The stem changes from 'pon-' to 'pus-'. This is a common pattern for verbs like 'saber' (supo) and 'caber' (cupo).
Preterite vs. Imperfect
Since 'pusieron' is in the preterite, it describes a completed action: 'They put the keys down and left.' (a single finished event). If you wanted to say 'They used to put...' you would use the imperfect: 'ponían'.
⭐ Usage Tips
Using 'Pusieron' with Clothes
'Pusieron' can mean 'they put on' clothes, but it focuses on the action of dressing. If you want to say 'they were wearing' clothes, you would typically use 'llevaban' or 'vestían'.
They turned on the radio (device activation).
pusieron(Verb)
they turned on
?devices/media
,they played
?music/movies
they broadcast
?TV/radio
📝 In Action
Los niños **pusieron** su película favorita en el DVD.
A2The children put on their favorite movie on the DVD player (or: The children started their favorite movie).
Cuando llegamos, ya **pusieron** el himno nacional.
B1When we arrived, they had already played the national anthem.
They imposed the rule (establishing conditions).
pusieron(Verb)
they imposed
?rules/conditions
,they established
?rules/conditions
they assigned
?tasks/names
,they named
?giving a name
📝 In Action
Los directores **pusieron** nuevas reglas de vestimenta en la oficina.
B1The directors imposed new dress code rules in the office.
Al bebé le **pusieron** el nombre de su abuelo.
B2They named the baby after his grandfather.
🔄 Conjugations
indicative
present
imperfect
preterite
subjunctive
present
imperfect
✏️ Quick Practice
💡 Quick Quiz: pusieron
Question 1 of 1
Which sentence uses 'pusieron' in the sense of 'to establish a rule'?
📚 More Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 'pusieron' used for 'they got/became' (an emotional state)?
Not directly. To express 'they became' or 'they got' (e.g., sad, happy), you need the reflexive form, 'se pusieron.' For example: 'Se pusieron contentos' (They became happy).
Why is 'pusieron' so irregular?
The verb 'poner' is one of the most common irregular verbs because it borrows its past tense stem ('pus-') from a different, older Latin verb form. You just have to memorize that the 'u' sound appears in all the simple past (preterite) forms.