Quiso

Quiso is a Spanish verb form that functions as the third-person singular preterite (pretérito simple) of the verb querer. In this tense, the stem changes to quis- for all persons, yielding the forms quise, quisiste, quiso, quisimos, quisisteis, quisieron. As a result, quiso specifically appears with él, ella, or usted in past contexts.

Meaning and usage

Quiso can indicate either that someone wanted something in the past or that someone tried to do something. The nuance depends on context and accompanying clauses. For example, "Ella quiso ir al cine" means "She wanted to go to the cinema." In a sentence like "Quiso ayudar, pero no pudo," it conveys the sense of attempting or trying to help, often followed by a clause describing the outcome, such as "but she couldn't." The distinction from the imperfect form querer (quería) is that quise, quisiste, quiso, etc. marks a completed, bounded moment in the past, whereas quería expresses a habitual or ongoing desire.

Grammatical notes

Quiso is used with third-person singular pronouns (él, ella, usted). The corresponding forms for other subjects are: quise (yo), quisiste (tú), quisimos (nosotros), quisisteis (vosotros), quisieron (ellos/ellas/ustedes). It is an irregular preterite form of querer, derived from the Latin verb quaerere in its modern stem quin- with standard preterite endings.

See also

Querer, Spanish verb conjugation, preterite tense.