ellos estuvieron

were

e s t u ˈb j e ɾ o n → estar
estuv to be + ieron 3rd person plural past
verb · third plural · past indicative Common #6,918
were Preterite tense (completed past action/state), third person plural.
SP: Ellos estuvieron en casa ayer por la tarde.
EN: They were at home yesterday afternoon.
Conjugation of estar
Indicative past
SingularPlural
First estuve estuvimos
Second estuviste —
Third estuvo estuvieron

Alguno de los que estuvieron allí adentro.

Some of those who were inside.

— Kajaki (2014)

Estuvieron juntos toda la noche hablando de sus recuerdos.

They spent the whole night together talking about their memories.

Sus comentarios estuvieron fuera de lugar.

His comments were out of line.

Las minifaldas estuvieron pasadas de moda durante un tiempo.

Miniskirts were out of fashion for a while.

Los exámenes estuvieron difíciles.

The exams were difficult.

— Primate (2026)

Tom y Mary estuvieron en el funeral de John.

Tom and Mary were at John's funeral.

No sé si estuvieron allí.

I don't know if they were there.

— La ciudad de las estrellas (La La Land) (2016)

Ellos admitieron que estuvieron equivocados.

They admitted that they were wrong.

Estuvieron bien.

They were good.

Todos estuvieron satisfechos.

Everyone was satisfied.

Estuvieron dos años cavando un túnel.

They spent two years digging a tunnel.

— Carandiru (2003)

Ellos no estuvieron en clases ayer.

They were not in class yesterday.

Esos dos que estuvieron con él todo este tiempo.

Those two who were with him all this time.

Caballeros, estuvieron fantásticos.

Gentlemen, you were fantastic.

— Adiós a mi concubina (1993)

Esas líneas estuvieron muy bien.

Those lines were very good.

— Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003)

Estuvieron todas.

They were all there.

España y Portugal estuvieron anteriormente bajo el dominio de los musulmanes.

Spain and Portugal were formerly under Muslim rule.

Pensé que las preguntas estuvieron fáciles.

I thought the questions were easy.

Los empleados de Air France estuvieron de huelga el verano pasado.

Air France employees went on strike last summer.

Ustedes nunca estuvieron solos.

You were never alone.

Ellos estuvieron conmigo en esa habitación toda la noche.

They were with me in that room all night.

Me pregunto si Tom y Mary estuvieron aquí ayer.

I wonder if Tom and Mary were here yesterday.

Todos estuvieron de acuerdo, excepto por Tom.

Everyone agreed, except for Tom.

Tus comentarios estuvieron totalmente fuera de lugar.

Your comments were completely out of line.

Apuesto que sí estuvieron.

I bet they were there.

— La ciudad de las estrellas (La La Land) (2016)

Estuvieron de acuerdo en todo.

They agreed on everything.

Nadie apoyó este deseo mío; todos estuvieron en contra.

Nobody supported this wish of mine; everyone was against it.

Estuvieron juntas en la barriga.

They were together in the womb.

— Masacre (Ven y mira) (1985)

Hoy estuvieron geniales.

They were great today.

— El botín (2026)

Las arrugas solo deberían indicar donde las sonrisas estuvieron.

Wrinkles should only indicate where smiles once were.

Nunca estuvieron solos.

They were never alone.

Aquí estuvieron Pablo y María.

Paul and Mary were here.

Estuvieron aquí.

They were here.

Todos estuvieron presentes.

Everyone was present.

Quiero el nombre de todos los que estuvieron acá ayer.

I want the names of everyone who was here yesterday.

Mary y Tom estuvieron de acuerdo.

Mary and Tom agreed.

Tanto la Cámara de Comercio, como la Escuela Jing Wu, estuvieron de acuerdo.

Both the Chamber of Commerce and the Jing Wu School agreed.

— Fearless - Sin miedo (2006)

Estuvieron geniales.

They were great.

— Fue la mano de Dios (2021)

Porque estuvieron muertos como nosotros y solo ellos regresaron.

Because they were dead like us, and only they came back.

— La sociedad de la nieve (2023)

Todos los grandes artistas estuvieron alguna vez destrozados y hambrientos.

All great artists were once broken and starving.

— Gully Boy (2019)

Los actores estuvieron estupendos.

The actors were great.

— Academia Rushmore (1998)

Solo un montón de piedras viejas que siempre estuvieron aquí.

Just a pile of old stones that have always been here.

— El laberinto del fauno (2006)

Mamá y él sólo estuvieron juntos una sola noche.

Mom and he were only together for one night.

Muchos de mis amigos estuvieron en Japón este año.

Many of my friends were in Japan this year.

Mis padres estuvieron encantados de oír lo de la llegada de nuestro bebé.

My parents were delighted to hear about the arrival of our baby.

Ellos estuvieron un poco antes de mi tiempo.

They were there a little before my time.

— El hombre de la Tierra (2007)

Estuvieron aquí hace menos de veinte minutos.

They were here less than twenty minutes ago.

— El laberinto del fauno (2006)

Todos estuvieron de acuerdo.

Everyone agreed.

Por favor diga una plegaria por aquellos que estuvieron a bordo.

Please say a prayer for those who were on board.

Tom y Mary sólo estuvieron casados por unos pocos meses.

Tom and Mary were only married for a few months.

auxiliary · third plural · past indicative Rare #34,387
were Used with a past participle to form the preterite perfect in the passive voice (e.g., “fueron vistos” is more common than “estuvieron vistos”).
SP: Los niños estuvieron cansados después del partido.
EN: The children were tired after the game.
Conjugation of estar
Indicative past
SingularPlural
First estuve estuvimos
Second estuviste —
Third estuvo estuvieron

Los barcos estuvieron buscándote durante semanas.

The ships were looking for you for weeks.

Tom y Mary estuvieron conversando.

Tom and Mary were talking.

Estuvieron discutiendo por horas.

They argued for hours.

Estuvieron peleando por horas.

They were fighting for hours.

Los perros estuvieron ladrando toda la noche.

The dogs were barking all night.

Estuvieron cuidando a una niña de la India y a un niño de Italia.

They were taking care of a girl from India and a boy from Italy.

Estuvieron tomando el sol en la playa.

They were sunbathing on the beach.

Estuvieron discutiendo hace dos noches.

They were arguing two nights ago.

Sounds similar to