conjugation.preterite.irregular-u-stems
Strong preterites in u: tuve, estuve, pude, puse, supe
A family of verbs with a special u-stem in the preterite and unstressed endings: tener → tuve, estar → estuve, poder → pude, poner → puse, saber → supe, andar → anduve, caber → cupe, haber → hube.
conjugationA2, B1standardinternally_reviewedv1.0.0
Explanation
These verbs replace their stem in the preterite with a u-form and take a single shared set of endings with no written accents: -e, -iste, -o, -imos, -isteis, -ieron. Tener → tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos, tuvisteis, tuvieron.
The stems to learn: tuv- (tener), estuv- (estar), pud- (poder), pus- (poner), sup- (saber), anduv- (andar), cup- (caber), hub- (haber). Derived verbs inherit them: mantener → mantuve, suponer → supuse.
Because the endings are unstressed, tuve and tuvo carry no accent — unlike regular hablé, habló. The same stem feeds the imperfect subjunctive: tuviera, pudiera, supiera.
Examples
I had to leave early.
Region: global
We couldn't find the address.
Region: global
They were in Sucre last week.
Region: global