Fernando y yo __ al mercado el domingo pasado.
The correct answer and explanation is:
The correct answer is “fuimos”.
This is the conjugated form of the verb “ir” (to go) in the preterite tense, first-person plural (nosotros) form. The sentence would read: “Fernando y yo fuimos al mercado el domingo pasado.”
In Spanish, the preterite tense is used to describe actions that are completed and occurred at a specific point in the past. The phrase “el domingo pasado” (last Sunday) signals that the action is finished and happened on a particular date. Therefore, the verb “ir” is conjugated in the preterite tense to reflect this.
The structure of the sentence includes “Fernando y yo” (Fernando and I), which indicates that the subject is plural (two people). To conjugate “ir” for a plural subject in the preterite tense, the correct form is “fuimos,” which corresponds to “we went” in English.
When conjugating verbs in Spanish, it’s crucial to choose the correct tense based on when the action occurs. The preterite is typically used for events that happened once, completed, and have no direct connection to the present. Since the sentence refers to an event that happened last Sunday and is not ongoing, the preterite tense is the appropriate choice.
It’s also important to note that “ir” is an irregular verb in the preterite tense, meaning its conjugation doesn’t follow the regular pattern for -ar, -er, or -ir verbs. For the subject “nosotros”, the form is “fuimos” instead of the expected “imos.”
In summary, the correct verb form is “fuimos” because it aligns with the preterite tense and the plural subject “Fernando y yo.”