Estar in Preterite

Most verbs follow a predictable path. Estar decided to take a scenic route. It’s irregular, which sounds scary but it's actually quite rhythmic. The key is the letters iv. They appear in almost every form. Instead of the usual endings, you get this unique set. It’s like the verb put on a fancy hat for the weekend. You’ll need to memorize this specific stem: estiv-. Once you have that, the rest falls into place. It’s one of the most used verbs in the language. Mastering it makes you sound instantly more fluent. Yes, even native speakers mess this up sometimes when they're tired, so don't sweat it too much. Just focus on that v sound. It's the heartbeat of this tense.

1. 1To build this verb, follow these steps:
2. 2Start with the irregular stem estiv- for almost all persons.
3. 3For eu (I), add -e to get estive.
4. 4For você/ele/ela (you/he/she), the stem changes slightly to este- plus -ve to get esteve.
5. 5For nós (we), add -emos to get estivemos.
6. 6For vocês/eles/elas (you all/they), add -eram to get estiveram.
7. 7Notice how the v stays throughout the conjugation. It’s your anchor. If you don't see a v, you're probably using the wrong tense! It’s a bit like a secret handshake for the past tense.

• Specific time markers: Use it with ontem (yesterday) or semana passada (last week).
• Finished durations: "I was in the meeting for two hours." Use por duas horas.
• Locations at a point in time: "I was at the beach on Saturday."
• Temporary states that ended: "I was sick, but I'm better now."

Imagine you're at a job interview. They ask where you were last year. You say, Estive em Londres por seis meses. It shows a completed period of time. Or maybe you're ordering food and the waiter asks why you're late. Estive no trânsito (I was in traffic). It explains a specific past situation that is now over. It’s perfect for travel stories too. Estivemos em Lisboa no verão passado (We were in Lisbon last summer). It’s a closed chapter in your life story.

• Habits: Don't use it for things you did "all the time" or "usually."
• Background info: If you're setting the scene in a story, use the imperfect (estava).
• Permanent traits: Use ser for things like nationality, profession, or personality.

If you say Eu estive alto, people will look at you funny. It implies you were tall for a second and then suddenly shrunk. Use ser for height! Also, avoid it for "I used to be." If you were always happy as a kid, that’s estava or era. Think of estive as a dot on a timeline and estava as a long, fuzzy line. If you can't put a specific "end" on it easily, estive might not be the right choice.

• Mixing up estive and estava: This is the big one. Estive is a point; estava is a line.
• Forgetting the v: Writing estei instead of estive. It sounds like a brand of tea, not a verb!
• Using it for permanent things: Estive brasileiro is a no-go. You are Brazilian, you didn't just "stay" Brazilian for the weekend.
• Spelling esteve as estive: Remember, the third person (he/she) is the "special" one with the e at the end.

Think of the v as your "verb validation." Without it, the sentence falls apart. It's like trying to drive a car without wheels. You might get somewhere, but it won't be pretty. Also, watch out for the accent marks in other tenses; the preterite of estar doesn't use them on these forms!

Compare Eu estive no Rio with Eu estava no Rio.

• Eu estive no Rio: You went, you stayed, you came back. The trip is over.
• Eu estava no Rio: You were there when something else happened. "I was in Rio (when I saw the parade)."

It’s the difference between a snapshot and a movie. Estive is the photo you show your mom. Estava is the video playing in the background of your memory. Think of it like a grammar traffic light. Red light is estive (stop, the action is done). Yellow light is estava (caution, the action was ongoing). Green light is estou (go, it's happening now).