responder means: to answer, to reply, to answer back
Click to see all conjugation charts of responder in every tense

In this conjugation lesson we are going to learn how to conjugate the verb responder in the Pretérito tense of the Indicativo mood. It means we will see step by step how to create and translate forms of each grammatical person.

This lesson is specifically about the responder verb conjugation. For an overview of all the Simple Tenses conjugation check the Simple Tenses Conjugation Chart.

You may also see this Video Presentation on how to conjugate verbs in Pretérito. It’s embedded below, but using the above link you can get additional information on conjugation in this tense as well as explanation of special cases and exceptions.

How to translate Pretérito to English

Note that the English phrases provided below next to each conjugation are not direct translations from Spanish to English. They are usually the closest general equivalents. The example differences are:

• In Spanish conjugation, there is the form usted in the third person singular. But this person does not translate to the English third person singular. It translates to the so called formal you and uses the inflected form which is most often represented as he/she/it in English conjugation charts.
• Similar situation happens in the third person plural, where ustedes translates to the English plural formal you but uses the form which corresponds to the they form in English.
• Tenses are used differently in Spanish and English, so the actual translation should always take into account the context and focus on translating the meaning, not just words.
• In both languages each verb may have multiple meanings and not every meaning translates directly to the other language. Here also, the context and focusing on the particular meaning helps to create the most accurate translation.

Note the timeline

The ability to correctly locate the desired position on the timeline is an important skill for proper use of tenses. So note the timeline in our lessons and visualize it while listening, speaking, reading or writing. After a bit practice you will be able to select the right tense to use much easier.

Step by step instructions

Pretérito belongs to the simple tenses group, which means that all of its inflected forms are one word long. There are also compound (compuesto) tenses in the Spanish language, where each conjugated form consists of two words.The verb responder has an entirely regular conjugation in the Pretérito tense of the Indicativo mood. It means this verb just follows the basic rules for its conjugation group (-er) without any exceptions, spelling corrections and the like. The basis for the conjugation in this tense is the stem of the verb, so we need to begin by splitting the infinitive into a stem and an ending. It’s easy to do. Just remove two letters from the end of the infinitive and you have the ending — one of -ar, -er or -ir. What’s left is the stem. So in case of our verb:

• the stem is: respond-
• and the ending is: -er

Use the stem respond- in each subject as the basis for the conjugation, the common prefix that each of the forms begins with. Next, add to this regular stem the endings specific to each person. Check out the image showing all the endings. Notice the colors and shapes of the letters. They are arranged to help you find patterns and make it easier to remember these endings.Each grammatical person has a specific ending in each of the three conjugation groups -ar, -er, -ir. Add the regular ending -í for the first person singular to create respondí:

• yo respondí – I answered

And again add the regular ending -iste for the second person singular to create respondiste:

• tú respondiste – you answered

And similarly add the regular ending -ió for the third person singular to create respondió:

• él respondió – he answered
• ella respondió – she answered
• usted respondió – (formal) you answered

And again add the regular ending -imos for the first person plural to create respondimos:

• nosotros respondimos – we answered
• nosotras respondimos – (feminine) we answered

Also as in the previous case add the regular ending -isteis for the second person plural to create respondisteis:

• vosotros respondisteis – (plural) you answered
• vosotras respondisteis – (feminine, plural) you answered

And once more add the regular ending -ieron for the third person plural to create respondieron:

• ellos respondieron – they answered
• ellas respondieron – (feminine) they answered
• ustedes respondieron – (formal, plural) you answered

This is it! The conjugation is now finished. Put together, the conjugation chart looks like this:

yo	respondí	I answered
tú	respondiste	you answered
él/ella/usted	respondió	he/she/it answered
nosotros/nosotras	respondimos	we answered
vosotros/vosotras	respondisteis	you answered
ellos/ellas/ustedes	respondieron	they answered

Click to see all conjugation charts of responder in every tense
But do not end your session yet – it’s important to repeat and practice the material in order to remember it. Check below for example phrases and some links.

Example sentences

Next Steps to Perfection To practice this conjugation and test your skills check this Conjugation Exercise or the Memory Game To see other conjugation lessons for this verb choose another tense: PresenteImperfectoCondicionalFuturoPretérito Perfecto CompuestoPretérito PluscuamperfectoFuturo PerfectoCondicional PerfectoPretérito Perfecto Compuesto (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto A (subjuntivo)Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto B (subjuntivo)Futuro Perfecto (subjuntivo)  For exercises and examples related to responder visit our Exercise section To see conjugation charts in all tenses for responder visit the Conjugator To explore other learning materials visit the Study section

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