Conjugate-zar verbs in the preterite tense in Spanish (El Pretérito Indefinido)
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Some verbs in Spanish end in -zar. They undergo a consonant change when they are conjugated in the preterite tense.
Learn about -ZAR verbs in El Pretérito Indefinido in Spanish
Verbs ending in -zar in Spanish, such as organizar (to organise), analizar (to analyse), and cazar (to hunt), have an orthographic (spelling) change. They follow the standard Spanish spelling convention that -zar verbs change z to c before endings beginning with e, as z is generally not written before e or i in native Spanish words, although there are a few exceptions, mainly in loanwords and proper nouns.
This affects the first person singular (yo), that have an -e ending: organicé, analicé, cacé...
Conjugation of "organizar" in El Pretérito Indefinido in Spanish
| yo | organicé |
| tú | organizaste |
| él / ella / Ud. | organizó |
| nosotros / nosotras | organizamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | organizasteis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | organizaron |
Have a look at and listen to these examples.
Crucé la calle con mucho cuidado.I crossed the street very carefully.
Organicé una fiesta sorpresa para Laura.I organised a surprise party for Laura.
Analicé el documento concienzudamente.I analysed the document thoroughly.
Cacé dos osos.I hunted two bears.
Here are some other examples with -z (not-c). Notice how the pronunciation is the same:
¿Quién organizó la fiesta de Susana?Who organized Susana's party?
Los niños pequeños no cruzaron la carretera solos.The little children didn't cross the road by themselves.
¿Cazasteis muchas mariposas en el parque?Did you catch lots of butterfies in the park?
For more verbs that follow this pattern see the List of Spanish -zar verbs that change z>c in the preterite for the yo form
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