cantaste

Cantaste is the second-person singular form of the Spanish verb cantar in the preterite tense, meaning “you sang.” It is used to describe a completed action in the past with the subject tú.

Cantar is a regular -ar verb, derived from Latin cantāre. In the preterite tense, regular -ar verbs take the endings -é, -aste, -ó, -amos, -asteis, -aron for the respective subjects. Cantaste is formed by removing -ar from cantar and adding -aste. The accent in cantaste helps preserve the correct pronunciation: can-TAS-te.

Usage of cantaste centers on past events or actions that are finished. It often appears in narratives, reports, or conversations about what someone did. Examples include: “Ayer cantaste una canción en la fiesta.” or “¿Cantaste en la reunión?” These illustrate a direct, completed action performed by the person addressed.

Cantaste has no separate meaning beyond the verb form; it functions grammatically as a past-tense predicate for the subject tú. Its use is common across Spanish-speaking regions, with no intrinsic regional variation in its form, though dialects may influence overall tense usage and preferred pronouns.

See also: Spanish conjugation, cantar, pretérito indefinido (preterite).