Spanish/Tenses/Indicative/Simple/Preterite

	-AR			-ER / -IR
	conjugation	example	translation	conjugation	example	translation
	-AR	hablar	to speak	-ER / -IR	comer	to eat
Yo	stem+é	hablé	I spoke	stem+í	comí	I ate
Tú	stem+aste	hablaste	You spoke	stem+iste	comiste	You ate
Él	stem+ó	habló	He spoke	stem+ió	comió	He ate
Nosotros	stem+amos	hablamos	We spoke	stem+imos	comimos	We ate
Vosotros	stem+asteis	hablasteis	You all spoke	stem+isteis	comisteis	You all ate
Ellos	stem+aron	hablaron	They spoke	stem+ieron	comieron	They ate

Some things to note:

1. Most significantly, the -ER and -IR verbs have exactly the same endings. This makes learning the preterite simpler.
2. The nosotros forms of the -AR and -IR verbs appear exactly the same as they do in the present. You must figure out their meaning based on context.
3. Accent marks are essential. Hablo and Habló are completely different; an accent mark makes the difference between "I speak" and "he spoke."