lavamos

Lavamos is a form of the Spanish verb lavar, meaning to wash. It is the first-person plural conjugation in the present indicative, and it is also the first-person plural form in the simple past (preterite). Because the spelling is identical for these two tenses, context is needed to determine the exact meaning.

In the present tense, lavamos expresses a current action by we. It is typically used with a direct object, such as in ejemplos like "Lavamos la ropa cada semana" (We wash the clothes every week) or "Lavamos los platos después de comer" (We wash the dishes after eating).

In the preterite tense, lavamos denotes a completed action in the past. An example is "Ayer lavamos el coche" (Yesterday we washed the car). The form is the same as the present, again relying on context or time markers to convey the past sense.

Grammatically, lavamos is a transitive verb form, requiring a direct object to complete its meaning in most sentences. It can also appear in reflexive constructions with the verb lavarse, as in "Nos lavamos las manos" (We wash our hands), where a reflexive pronoun accompanies the verb.

Etymology and related forms: lavar comes from Latin lavare, and is part of the larger set of -ar verbs in Spanish. The form lavamos follows the standard nosotros ending for both the present and the preterite.