Tour Antigua in Spanish

Quick Answer

¡Hola!Learn how to tour Antigua in Spanish! Specifically, learn how to do the following in Spanish:

• discuss trips in the past

• talk about historical events

• use the preterite to talk about events that happened at a specific time

Vocabulary

Let's start off with the vocab words in these lessons!

Adjective

Spanish	English
rodeado	surrounded

examples
Antigua está rodeada de volcanes. Antigua is surrounded by volcanoes.

Nouns

Spanish	English
Antigua	Antigua
el arqueólogo	archaeologist
la arquitectura	architecture
el ascenso	climb
el balneario	spa
el caballo	horse
la cima	summit
el cráter	crater
el daño	damage
el descenso	descent
la erupción	eruption
Guatemala	Guatemala
el guatemalteco	Guatemalan
la hermanastra	stepsister
la lava	lava
el murciélago	bat
la región	region
el susto	scare
el terremoto	earthquake
el volcán	volcano

examples
Conoció a un arqueólogo. She met an archaeologist.
Le gustó la arquitectura. She liked the architecture.
El ascenso empezó a las seis de la mañana. The climb began at six in the morning.

Where’s Antigua?

While you may be thinking we’re referring to an island in the Caribbean, we’re not! Antigua is also a small city located in southern Guatemala that's a popular hiking destination due to proximity to multiple volcanoes!

Note that the phrase a caballomeans on horseback!

Noun Phrases

Spanish	English
las ciencias naturales	natural sciences
la contaminación del aire	air pollution
el + season + pasado	last (season)
unos días antes que	a few days before

examples
Ella viajó unos días antes que yo. She traveled a few days before me.
Estudié ciencias naturales en la universidad. I studied natural sciences in college.
Provocó la contaminación del aire. It caused air pollution.

Note that the phrase unos días antes que is followed by a person’s name or a pronoun.

Prepositional Phrases

Spanish	English
a las+ time + de la mañana/tarde/noche	at (time) in the morning/afternoon/night
al día siguiente	the next day
al final del día	at the end of the day
de repente	suddenly
por última vez	the last time

examples
A las nueve de la mañana, llegamos a la cima. At nine in the morning, we reached the summit.
Al día siguiente, subimos el Volcán de Agua. The next day, we went up the Volcan de Agua.
Al final del día, disfrutamos de un balneario. At the end of the day, we enjoyed ourselves at a spa.

Verbs

In this skill, you learn the following verbs!

Acercarse

Acercarse(to approach) is an -ar reflexive verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me acerqué	I approached
tú	te acercaste	you approached	informal singular you
vos	te acercaste	you approached	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se acercó	he, she approached
usted	se acercó	you approached	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos acercamos	we approached
vosotros, vosotras	os acercasteis	you approached	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se acercaron	they approached
ustedes	se acercaron	you approached	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Aparecer

Aparecer(to appear) is an -er verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	aparecí	I appeared
tú	apareciste	you appeared	informal singular you
vos	apareciste	you appeared	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	apareció	he, she appeared
usted	apareció	you appeared	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	aparecimos	we appeared
vosotros, vosotras	aparecisteis	you appeared	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	aparecieron	they appeared
ustedes	aparecieron	you appeared	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Ascender

Ascender(to climb) is an -er verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	ascendí	I climbed
tú	ascendiste	you climbed	informal singular you
vos	ascendiste	you climbed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	ascendió	he, she climbed
usted	ascendió	you climbed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	ascendimos	we climbed
vosotros, vosotras	ascendisteis	you climbed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	ascendieron	they climbed
ustedes	ascendieron	you climbed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Conocer

Conocer(to meet) is an -er verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	conocí	I met
tú	conociste	you met	informal singular you
vos	conociste	you met	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	conoció	he, she met
usted	conoció	you met	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	conocimos	we met
vosotros, vosotras	conocisteis	you met	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	conocieron	they met
ustedes	conocieron	you met	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Personal A

When using conocer to mean to meet a person, we use a little preposition called the a personal(personal a). For example:

examples

Conoció a un arqueólogo.

She met an archaeologist.

Dar

Dar(to give) is an irregular verb in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	di	I gave
tú	diste	you gave	informal singular you
vos	diste	you gave	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	dio	he, she gave
usted	dio	you gave	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	dimos	we gave
vosotros, vosotras	disteis	you gave	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	dieron	they gave
ustedes	dieron	you gave	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Decidir

Decidir(to decide) is an -ir verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	decidí	I decided
tú	decidiste	you decided	informal singular you
vos	decidiste	you decided	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	decidió	he, she decided
usted	decidió	you decided	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	decidimos	we decided
vosotros, vosotras	decidisteis	you decided	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	decidieron	they decided
ustedes	decidieron	you decided	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Destruir

Destruir(to destroy) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," destrui, changes to destruy in the él, ella, usted and ellos, ellas, ustedes forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	destruí	I destroyed
tú	destruiste	you destroyed	informal singular you
vos	destruiste	you destroyed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	destruyó	he, she destroyed
usted	destruyó	you destroyed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	destruimos	we destroyed
vosotros, vosotras	destruisteis	you destroyed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	destruyeron	they destroyed
ustedes	destruyeron	you destroyed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Disfrutar

Disfrutar(to enjoy) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	disfruté	I enjoyed
tú	disfrutaste	you enjoyed	informal singular you
vos	disfrutaste	you enjoyed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	disfrutó	he, she enjoyed
usted	disfrutó	you enjoyed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	disfrutamos	we enjoyed
vosotros, vosotras	disfrutasteis	you enjoyed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	disfrutaron	they enjoyed
ustedes	disfrutaron	you enjoyed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Empezar

Empezar(to begin) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	empecé	I began
tú	empezaste	you began	informal singular you
vos	empezaste	you began	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	empezó	he, she began
usted	empezó	you began	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	empezamos	we began
vosotros, vosotras	empezasteis	you began	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	empezaron	they began
ustedes	empezaron	you began	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Enseñar

Enseñar(to show) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	enseñé	I showed
tú	enseñaste	you showed	informal singular you
vos	enseñaste	you showed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	enseñó	he, she showed
usted	enseñó	you showed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	enseñamos	we showed
vosotros, vosotras	enseñasteis	you showed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	enseñaron	they showed
ustedes	enseñaron	you showed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Erupcionar

Erupcionar(to erupt) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.
When talking about volcanos erupting we use the third-person singular or plural forms. In the preterite these are:

Number	Conjugation
Singular	erupcionó
Plural	erupcionaron

Fascinar

Fascinar(to fascinate) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.
Note that when we use fascinar to mean to fascinate, it behaves like gustar.

With verbs like gustar, the subject of the sentence is the thing being liked, while the thing doing the liking is expressed via an indirect object.

This table refers to being fascinated by a singular thing. If the thing that fascinated you is plural, use fascinaron.

Conjugation	Translation	Notes
me fascinó	it fascinated me
te fascinó	it fascinated you	informal singular you
te fascinó	it fascinated you	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
le fascinó	it fascinated him, her
le fascinó	it fascinated you	formal singular you
nos fascinó	it fascinated us
os fascinó	it fascinated you	informal plural you (in Spain)
les fascinó	it fascinated them
les fascinó	it fascinated you	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Gustar

Gustar(to like) is an irregular verb in the preterite.

With verbs like gustar, the subject of the sentence is the thing being liked, while the thing doing the liking is expressed via an indirect object.

This table refers to liking a singular thing. If the thing that was liked is plural, use gustaron.

Conjugation	Translation	Notes
me gustó	I liked
te gustó	you liked	informal singular you
te gustó	you liked	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
le gustó	he, she liked
le gustó	you liked	formal singular you
nos gustó	we liked
os gustó	you liked	informal plural you (in Spain)
les gustó	they liked
les gustó	you liked	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Haber

In this skill, you learned the verb haber. Haber is commonly used as an impersonal verb to state what exists. When we’re talking about the existence of something in the preterite tense, we use one form of the verb: hubo. Note that the verb does not change in the preterite tense when talking about singular vs plural objects - you always use hubo!

examples
Hubo un terremoto en 1773. There was an earthquake in 1773.

Ir

Ir(to go) is an irregular verb in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	fui	I went
tú	fuiste	you went	informal singular you
vos	fuiste	you went	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	fue	he, she went
usted	fue	you went	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	fuimos	we went
vosotros, vosotras	fuisteis	you went	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	fueron	they went
ustedes	fueron	you went	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Note that none of the forms of the verb ir take an accent in the preterite.

Llegar

Llegar(to reach) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	llegué	I reached
tú	llegaste	you reached	informal singular you
vos	llegaste	you reached	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	llegó	he, she reached
usted	llegó	you reached	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	llegamos	we reached
vosotros, vosotras	llegasteis	you reached	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	llegaron	they reached
ustedes	llegaron	you reached	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Poder

Poder(to be able to) is a stem-changing verb in the preterite. That means that its "stem," po, changes to pu in all forms.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	pude	I could
tú	pudiste	you could	informal singular you
vos	pudiste	you could	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	pudo	he, she could
usted	pudo	you could	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	pudimos	we could
vosotros, vosotras	pudisteis	you could	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	pudieron	they could
ustedes	pudieron	you could	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Provocar

Provocar(to cause) is an -ar verb with an irregular yo form in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	provoqué	I caused
tú	provocaste	you caused	informal singular you
vos	provocaste	you caused	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	provocó	he, she caused
usted	provocó	you caused	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	provocamos	we caused
vosotros, vosotras	provocasteis	you caused	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	provocaron	they caused
ustedes	provocaron	you caused	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Relajarse

Relajarse(to relax) is an -ar pronominal verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	me relajé	I relaxed
tú	te relajaste	you relaxed	informal singular you
vos	te relajaste	you relaxed	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	se relajó	he, she relaxed
usted	se relajó	you relaxed	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	nos relajamos	we relaxed
vosotros, vosotras	os relajasteis	you relaxed	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	se relajaron	they relaxed
ustedes	se relajaron	you relaxed	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Ser

Ser(to be) is an irregular verb in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	fui	I was
tú	fuiste	you were	informal singular you
vos	fuiste	you were	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	fue	he, she was
usted	fue	you were	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	fuimos	we were
vosotros, vosotras	fuisteis	you were	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	fueron	they were
ustedes	fueron	you were	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

No, we didn’t make a mistake and yes, you’re seeing that right. Ser and ir are conjugated the same way in the preterite!

Note that none of the forms of the verb ser take an accent in the preterite.

Subir

Subir(to go up) is an -ir verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	subí	I went up
tú	subiste	you went up	informal singular you
vos	subiste	you went up	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	subió	he, she went up
usted	subió	you went up	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	subimos	we went up
vosotros, vosotras	subisteis	you went up	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	subieron	they went up
ustedes	subieron	you went up	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Sufrir

Sufrir(to suffer) is an -ir verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	sufrí	I suffered
tú	sufriste	you suffered	informal singular you
vos	sufriste	you suffered	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	sufrió	he, she suffered
usted	sufrió	you suffered	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	sufrimos	we suffered
vosotros, vosotras	sufristeis	you suffered	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	sufrieron	they suffered
ustedes	sufrieron	you suffered	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Terminar

Terminar(to finish) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	terminé	I finished
tú	terminaste	you finished	informal singular you
vos	terminaste	you finished	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	terminó	he, she finished
usted	terminó	you finished	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	terminamos	we finished
vosotros, vosotras	terminasteis	you finished	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	terminaron	they finished
ustedes	terminaron	you finished	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Ver

Ver(to see) is an irregular verb in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	vi	I saw
tú	viste	you saw	informal singular you
vos	viste	you saw	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	vio	he, she saw
usted	vio	you saw	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	vimos	we saw
vosotros, vosotras	visteis	you saw	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	vieron	they saw
ustedes	vieron	you saw	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Note that none of the forms of the verb ver take an accent in the preterite.

Viajar

Viajar(to travel) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	viajé	I traveled
tú	viajaste	you traveled	informal singular you
vos	viajaste	you traveled	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	viajó	he, she traveled
usted	viajó	you traveled	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	viajamos	we traveled
vosotros, vosotras	viajasteis	you traveled	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	viajaron	they traveled
ustedes	viajaron	you traveled	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

Visitar

Visitar(to visit) is an -ar verb that is regular in the preterite.

Pronoun(s)	Conjugation	Translation	Notes
yo	visité	I visited
tú	visitaste	you visited	informal singular you
vos	visitaste	you visited	informal singular you (in parts of Latin America)
él, ella	visitó	he, she visited
usted	visitó	you visited	formal singular you
nosotros, nosotras	visitamos	we visited
vosotros, vosotras	visitasteis	you visited	informal plural you (in Spain)
ellos, ellas	visitaron	they visited
ustedes	visitaron	you visited	plural you (in Latin America), formal plural you (in Spain)

The Preterite

Regular Spanish Preterite Forms

There are only two sets of endings for regular preterite verbs, one for -ar verbs and one for both -er and -ir verbs. To conjugate a regular verb in the preterite tense, simply remove the infinitive ending (-ar, -er, or -ir) and add the preterite ending that matches the subject. Check out the table of regular preterite endings below.

Subject	-ar Verbs	-er and -ir Verbs
yo	-é	-í
tú	-aste	-iste
él, ella, usted	-ó	-ió
nosotros	-amos	-imos
vosotros	-asteis	-isteis
ellos, ellas, ustedes	-aron	-ieron

Irregular and Stem-Changing Verbs in the Preterite

Note that some verbs, like many of those we saw in this lesson, are irregular or stem-changing in the preterite! Learn more about irregular verbs, spelling changes, and stem-changing preterite verbs in this article.

When Do We Use the Preterite?

Actions Completed in the Past

We use the preterite to describe actions completed at a point in the past, especially those that occurred at specific times and dates. For example, we often use the preterite with the following phrases: