What is the preterite of sentir in Spanish?

The preterite of sentir is: sentí, sentiste, sintió, sentimos, sentisteis, sintieron. The third-person forms (sintió, sintieron) shift the stem e to i; all other forms keep the e. The endings are standard -ir preterite endings with regular accents on yo (sentí) and él/ella (sintió).

Why is it sintió instead of sentió?

Sentir belongs to the stem-changing -ir verb family. Verbs with e in the stem shift to i in the third-person preterite forms (sintió, sintieron). Same rule applies to pedir (pidió), servir (sirvió), repetir (repitió). The other four forms keep the original e.

What's the difference between sentir and sentirse?

Sentir + noun is for perceiving things: sentí un dolor (I felt a pain), sentí frío (I felt cold). Sentirse + adjective is for emotional/physical states: me sentí cansado (I felt tired), se sintió feliz (he felt happy). Adjectives describing how you feel almost always require the reflexive form.

How can I learn to use the preterite of sentir naturally?

Sentir / sentirse appears in any story about emotions, physical states, or sensations, contexts that show up constantly in Parrot's short-form videos. Hearing native speakers say sentí, sintió, me sentí, se sintieron in real life-event recounts locks the e-to-i shift in fast.

Spanish grammar · Intermediate

Preterite of Sentir: All Forms with Examples

Written by Sofia Ramirez, Lead Spanish Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

The preterite of sentir is regular except for an e-to-i shift in the third-person forms (sintió, sintieron). The other forms keep the e (sentí, sentiste, sentimos, sentisteis). Reflexive sentirse follows the same pattern, used for emotions and physical sensations.

Sentí mucho frío al salir.

I felt very cold when I went out.

What it is

Sentir's preterite is regular except for the stem shift in third-person forms: e becomes i, giving sintió and sintieron. The other four forms keep the e (sentí, sentiste, sentimos, sentisteis). Reflexive sentirse (to feel a way) uses the same conjugation with reflexive pronouns added.

In Sentí mucho frío al salir (I felt very cold when I went out), sentí marks one specific sensation at a past moment. The preterite frames the feeling as triggered then completed, distinct from sentía (was feeling, ongoing).

How to spot it

The e-to-i shift only happens in third person: sintió, sintieron. The other four forms keep the e. Reflexive me sentí, se sintió, nos sentimos, se sintieron follows the same rule.

Sentí una vibración en el suelo. — I felt a vibration on the floor.
Se sintió mal después de la cena. — He felt sick after dinner.
Sintieron una emoción enorme. — They felt a huge emotion.

Same e-to-i pattern as pedir, servir, repetir, seguir. The reflexive sentirse is one of the most common verbs in Spanish for talking about how you feel.

Preterite of Sentir Quick Reference

Preterite of sentir, all six forms

Person	Form	Translation
yo	sentí	I felt
tú	sentiste	you felt
él/ella/Ud.	sintió	he, she, you (formal) felt
nosotros	sentimos	we felt
vosotros	sentisteis	you all felt (Spain)
ellos/Uds.	sintieron	they, you all felt

Common Preterite of Sentir Examples in Spanish

Sentir covers both physical sensations and emotional states. The preterite captures the moment of feeling something at a specific past time.

Physical Sensations

Sentí un dolor en el pecho.: I felt a pain in my chest.
Sentiste el viento frío de la mañana.: You felt the cold morning wind.
Sintió un escalofrío al entrar.: He felt a chill on entering.
Sentimos un temblor en la noche.: We felt a tremor at night.
Sintieron el calor del fuego.: They felt the heat of the fire.

Physical sensations almost always take sentir. The preterite captures the moment the sensation registered.

Emotional Reactions (sentirse)

Me sentí muy feliz por ti.: I felt very happy for you.
¿Te sentiste mal después?: Did you feel bad afterward?
Se sintió incómoda en la fiesta.: She felt uncomfortable at the party.
Nos sentimos orgullosos del equipo.: We felt proud of the team.
Se sintieron decepcionados con el resultado.: They felt disappointed with the result.

Reflexive sentirse + adjective is the standard way to describe how you felt: me sentí feliz, se sintió triste. The adjective agrees with the subject's gender and number.

Sorrow and Regret (lo siento)

Sentí mucho su pérdida.: I was very sorry for her loss.
Sentimos no poder asistir.: We were sorry we couldn't attend.
Sintió la separación profundamente.: He felt the separation deeply.
Sintieron tu ausencia en la reunión.: They felt your absence at the meeting.
Lo sentí muchísimo cuando me enteré.: I was very sorry when I found out.

Sentir (without the reflexive) also covers regret and condolence. The expression lo sentí mucho is the past-tense version of lo siento (I'm sorry).

Perceiving / Noticing

Sentí pasos detrás de mí.: I felt / heard footsteps behind me.
Sintió que alguien lo observaba.: He sensed that someone was watching him.
Sentimos un cambio en el ambiente.: We felt a change in the atmosphere.
Sintieron la presencia del jefe.: They sensed the boss's presence.
¿Sentiste la lluvia caer?: Did you feel the rain falling?

Sentir also means to sense or perceive, anything from physical sounds to intuitive impressions. The preterite captures the moment of perception.

How to Form the Preterite of Sentir

e → i in Third-Person Forms

The stem sentir has e, but the third-person preterite forms shift it to i: sintió (él/ella/usted) and sintieron (ellos/ellas/ustedes). The other four forms keep the e: sentí, sentiste, sentimos, sentisteis. This e-to-i shift in third person is shared by other stem-changing -ir verbs (pedir, servir, repetir).

sentir → e in 1st/2nd person, i in 3rd person: sentí / sintió / sentimos / sintieron.

Same root, just a vowel change in 3rd person.

Only the él/ella and ellos forms shift. The other four stay with sentir's regular e.

Regular Endings with Accents

The endings are the standard -ir preterite set: -í, -iste, -ió, -imos, -isteis, -ieron. Yo and él/ella keep their accents (sentí, sintió), unlike the truly irregular preterites that strip accents.

sentí (accent on í), sintió (accent on ó).

Standard accent placement for regular -ir preterites.

Sentir is regular in its endings; only the stem changes in third person.

Reflexive Sentirse for Feelings

Reflexive sentirse + adjective is the standard way to express how you felt: me sentí cansado, se sintió bien, nos sentimos orgullosos. The adjective agrees with the subject. The e-to-i rule still applies in se sintió, se sintieron.

Me sentí bien. Se sintieron mal.

I felt good. They felt bad.

Reflexive sentirse + adjective for emotional/physical states. Non-reflexive sentir + noun for sensing things.

Sentir + Que + Subjunctive

When sentir means to be sorry that something happened, it often triggers the past subjunctive in the dependent clause: Sentí que no pudieras venir (I was sorry you couldn't come). When sentir means to perceive or sense a fact, it takes the indicative.

Sentí que llovía. (perceiving, indicative) vs. Sentí que no vinieras. (regretting, subjunctive)

I felt it was raining. vs. I was sorry you didn't come.

Perceiving a fact = indicative. Regretting an outcome = subjunctive.

Common Mistakes with Preterite of Sentir

Incorrect: Él sentió un dolor fuerte. — He felt a sharp pain. (wrong, third-person needs the e-to-i shift)

Correct: Él sintió un dolor fuerte. — He felt a sharp pain.

The third-person singular preterite of sentir is sintió, not sentió. The e in the stem flips to i in él/ella/usted and ellos/ellas/ustedes forms.

Incorrect: Yo sintí mucho frío anoche. — I felt very cold last night. (wrong, only third-person shifts the stem)

Correct: Yo sentí mucho frío anoche. — I felt very cold last night.

The e-to-i shift only happens in third-person forms (sintió, sintieron). The yo form keeps the e: sentí. Same goes for tú, nosotros, and vosotros.

Incorrect: Me sentí triste cuando me lo dijiste. — I felt sad when you told me. (this is actually correct)

Correct: Me sentí triste cuando me lo dijiste. — I felt sad when you told me.

Wait, this is a valid form. A common real mistake is using sentir (without the reflexive) where sentirse is needed: Sentí triste is wrong because triste is an adjective describing the speaker's state, which requires reflexive sentirse. Always pair adjectives describing your feelings with sentirse, not sentir.

Preterite of Sentir FAQs

What is the preterite of sentir in Spanish?: The preterite of sentir is: sentí, sentiste, sintió, sentimos, sentisteis, sintieron. The third-person forms (sintió, sintieron) shift the stem e to i; all other forms keep the e. The endings are standard -ir preterite endings with regular accents on yo (sentí) and él/ella (sintió).
Why is it sintió instead of sentió?: Sentir belongs to the stem-changing -ir verb family. Verbs with e in the stem shift to i in the third-person preterite forms (sintió, sintieron). Same rule applies to pedir (pidió), servir (sirvió), repetir (repitió). The other four forms keep the original e.
What's the difference between sentir and sentirse?: Sentir + noun is for perceiving things: sentí un dolor (I felt a pain), sentí frío (I felt cold). Sentirse + adjective is for emotional/physical states: me sentí cansado (I felt tired), se sintió feliz (he felt happy). Adjectives describing how you feel almost always require the reflexive form.
How does sentir trigger the subjunctive?: When sentir expresses regret (I'm sorry that...), it triggers the subjunctive in the dependent clause: Sentí que no pudieras venir (I was sorry you couldn't come). When sentir means to perceive a fact, it takes the indicative: Sentí que llovía (I felt it was raining). The meaning determines the mood.
How can I learn to use the preterite of sentir naturally?: Sentir / sentirse appears in any story about emotions, physical states, or sensations, contexts that show up constantly in Parrot's short-form videos. Hearing native speakers say sentí, sintió, me sentí, se sintieron in real life-event recounts locks the e-to-i shift in fast.