Conjugate poder in El Pretérito Indefinido (simple past)

2021-07-07

The verb poder (to be able to) is irregular in El Pretérito Indefinido:

yo	pude
tú	pudiste
él/ella/Ud.	pudo
nosotros / nosotras	pudimos
vosotros / vosotras	pudisteis
ellos/ellas/Uds.	pudieron

Notice that in the stem the -o- is replaced by -u-

Here are some examples to look at and listen to:

Yo pude ver la final de la Champions.I was able to see the Champions League final.

Tú pudiste llegar a tiempo.You were able to arrive on time.

Él pudo irse de vacaciones.He was able to go on holiday.

Usted pudo volar en primera clase.You were able to fly first class.

Ella pudo viajar a Estados Unidos.She was able to travel to the USA.

Nosotros pudimos escuchar la canción.We were able to listen to the song.

Vosotros pudisteis caminar a las montañas.You were able to walk to the mountains.

Ellas pudieron cumplir sus sueños.They were able to fulfill their dreams.

¿Ustedes pudieron reservar mesa en ese restaurante?Were you able to book a table in that restaurant?

Poder belongs to a group of verbs that all have an irregular stem but share the same set of endings. To learn more about this have a look at Irregulares en Indefinido/mismas terminaciones.

Want to make sure your Spanish sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Braimap today »

Learn more about these related Spanish grammar topics

Examples and resources