How to Say "they stayed" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “they stayed” is “estuvieron” — A1 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
Examples
Ellos estuvieron en la biblioteca hasta las cinco.
They were at the library until five o'clock.
¿Ustedes estuvieron aquí ayer por la mañana?
Were you (plural, formal) here yesterday morning?
Las llaves estuvieron debajo de la mesa todo el tiempo.
The keys were under the table the whole time.
The Simple Past (Preterite)
The form 'estuvieron' tells you that the action started and finished at a specific time in the past. It's used for completed events, like 'They were at the party for two hours.'
Irregularity of Estar
The verb 'estar' is irregular in the simple past. Notice how it uses the 'estuv-' stem, not the regular '-ar' ending pattern. You just have to memorize this change!
Related Translations
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