retrasó

Retrasé is the first-person singular form of the Spanish verb retrasar in the pretérito indefinido (pretérito simple). Retrasar means to cause something to be late or to postpone it; in English, “I delayed” or “I postponed.” The form is used in narrative to indicate that the speaker caused a delay in a past action.

Usage and meaning: Retrasé is transitive and typically takes a direct object representing the thing that was delayed (for example, la entrega, el envío, la reunión). Example: “Ayer retrasé la entrega de los informes.” This indicates that the speaker caused the delivery to be late. The word is distinct from retraso, a noun meaning “delay,” and from retrasado, an adjective meaning “delayed.”

Grammar and related forms: Retrasé is a regular -ar verb in the pretérito indefinido. Related forms include retrasar (to delay), retrasando (delaying), and retraso (delay). Its imperfect form is retrasaba (I was delaying / I used to delay), which describes ongoing or repeated past actions. The participle is retrasado (delayed).

Usage notes: Retrasé expresses a completed action in the past and emphasizes the act of causing the delay. In formal or technical writing, it is common to contrast retrasé with otros verb forms that describe the event being delayed rather than the action of delaying.

Etymology: The verb derives from re- (again/back) combined with atrasar, itself from atras (behind, back), reflecting the idea of moving something to a later time. See also retrasar, retraso, atrasar.