In this exercise, we need to fill in the blank with the correct conjugation of some verbs in the preterite tense. This tense is one of two simple past tenses. It is used to describe actions that took place or were completed at a certain point in the past. So, we have the following six sentences:
(1) and (2) Right answers:vio / compró
By filling in the blank, the sentence remains as follows:
Ayer Paula vio un vestido muy barato en la tienda y lo compró
As Paula can be replaced by the subject pronoun ella that is the subject pronoun for the third person singular in the preterite given in feminine form. Then, the conjugation of the verb ver must match this person being vio the correct conjugation. As ver is an irregular verb, you need to memorize the conjugations of this verb for each subject pronoun.
On the other hand, the same happens to the ar regular verb comprar whose conjugation for the third person singular is compró. To conjugate regular verbs for the third person singular remove the ending ar and add ó to the end of the word.
(3) Right vio / compró
By filling in the blank, the sentence remains as follows:
En Navidad, los dependientes vendieron muchos calcetines y medias.
Los dependientes can be replaced by the third person plural ellos. So the er regular verb vender conjugates into vendieron for the third person plural. To conjugate regular verbs for the third person plural, take away the er ending and add the ending ieron to the end of the word.
(4) Right gasté
By filling in the blank, the sentence remains as follows:
La semana pasada fui a las rebajas en el centro comercial. Estoy contenta porque no gasté mucho dinero.
This sentence stands for the first person singular even though the pronoun is not written in a explicit way. In Spanish, sometimes it is not necessary to include the pronoun in a sentence if you know who the sentence is talking about. Therefore, gasté is the conjugation of the verb gastar for the first person singular. To conjugate this verb for this person, take away the ar ending and add é to the end of the word.
(5) and (6) Right oíste / cerró
By filling in the blank, the sentence remains as follows:
Fernanda, ¿Oíste la radio anoche? El famoso almacén la Barata cerró anteayer.
In this sentence, someone is asking Fernanda if she listened to the radio yesterday. So the question stands for the second person singular. In this way, the conjugation of the verb oír that matches the second person singular is oíste. As oír is an irregular verb, you need to memorize the conjugations as well.
On the other hand, cerró is the conjugation of the ar irregular verb cerrar for the third person singular. La barata matches the third person singular, hence the conjugation is as mentioned. In this context, this word can be translated in English as close down.
(7) Right busqué
By filling in the blank, the sentence remains as follows:
Marcela, yo ya busqué tus revistas de moda dos veces, pero no las encontré.
This sentence stands for the first person singular. So busqué is the conjugation of the verb buscar for this person. This is an irregular verb, this there is no any rule for irregular verbs. In this way, you need to memorize each conjugation as mentioned above.
(8) and (9) Right pagó / usó
By filling in the blank, the sentence remains as follows:
¿Usted pagó en efectivo o usó su tarjeta de crédito?
Usted is the subject pronoun for the second person singular but in a formal way. So pagó is the conjugation of the verb pagar for the second person singular (usted - formal you). Keep in mind that conjugations of verbs for this pronoun is the same as for the third person singular.
On the other hand, usó is the conjugation of the verb usar for the second person singular (usted - formal you). Usar is a regular ar verb. To conjugate this verb take away the ar ending and add ó to the end of the word. For regular verbs, this ending is valid both for the pronoun usted and for the third person singular.
