preterit

American  

[pret-er-it] / ˈprɛt ər ɪt /

Or preterite

noun

Grammar.

1. in English, the simple past, or an instance or form of a specific verb in the simple past, such as ate or walked.

2. a verb tense, construction, or form in another language with a meaning similar to that of the simple past in English.

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adjective

1. Grammar. designating a verb tense expressing a past action or state.

2. Archaic. bygone; past.

Other Word Forms

• preteritness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of preterit

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin praeteritus “past, gone by,” past participle of praeterīre “to go by,” from praeter- preter- + īre “to go”; as tense name, from Latin (tempus) praeteritum “(time) past”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

preterit

The preterit singular and past participle of Class I end in -ede and -ed, or -de and -ed respectively.

From Anglo-Saxon Grammar and Exercise Book with Inflections, Syntax, Selections for Reading, and Glossary by C. Alphonso (Charles Alphonso) Smith

In the Mexican there are the terminals ya or a in the imperfect, the augment o in the preterit, and others in the future.

From The Philosophic Grammar of American Languages, as Set Forth by Wilhelm von Humboldt With the Translation of an Unpublished Memoir by Him on the American Verb by Daniel Garrison Brinton

The preterit parfyte, as well of the fyrst as of the seconde conjugation hath dyvers termynations, but there is four speciall, that is to say in us, in is, in ins and in ay.

From An Introductorie for to Lerne to Read, To Pronounce, and to Speke French Trewly by Giles Du Wés

The weak preterit tense of berien is very rare; if bere = A.S. beran sometimes has the same meaning, i.e. ‘to strike,’ the reason is that A.S. beran and Icel. berja are confounded.

From Torrent of Portyngale by Unknown

There are about twenty verbs belonging to Class I that are irregular in having no umlaut in the preterit and past participle.

From Anglo-Saxon Grammar and Exercise Book with Inflections, Syntax, Selections for Reading, and Glossary by C. Alphonso (Charles Alphonso) Smith