The Past Simple is the most common way of talking about past events or states which have finished. It is often used with past time references (e.g. yesterday, two years ago).

• A past event could be one thing that happened in the past, or a repeated thing.

I stopped at a zebra crossing.
We carried on with the test.
We played tennis every day in August.

• A state is a situation without an action happening.

We stayed at my grandparents’ house last summer.

Regular past simple forms are formed by adding –ed to the infinitive of the verb.

start → started
kill → killed
jump → jumped

Yes, but there are some spelling rules. If a verb ends in –e, you add –d.

agree → agreed
like → liked
escape → escaped

If a verb ends in a vowel and a consonant, the consonant is usually doubled before –ed.

stop → stopped
plan → planned

If a verb ends in consonant and –y, you take off the y and add –ied.

try → tried
carry → carried   

But if the word ends in a vowel and –y, you add –ed.

play → played
enjoy → enjoyed

 

 

 

Past Continuous

For the formation of this tense see the following chart

 

∗We use the past continuous to talk about actions that were in progress (not finished) at a specific moment in the past.

• ‘What were you doing at 9?’ ‘I was studying.’
• When I saw them yesterday, they were arguing.

The specific moment in the past can be described by a time expression (at 9 a.m., at midday, at lunchtime, all morning, all day, etc.):

• They were swimming at 7 in the morning.
• At midday, they were still working.

Or by a simple past sentence:

• They were swimming when I saw them.
• When she arrived, they were still working.

∗We often use the past continuous at the beginning of a story to describe the situation.

• It was getting dark, and I was walking fast. Suddenly …

 

 

Past Simple vs Past Continuous

∗We use the past simple for completed actions in the past, and we use the past continuous for actions in progress (not finished) in the past.

• We ate out yesterday. (the action is finished)
• We were eating at 9. (the action was not finished)

∗The past continuous describes a longer action or situation, and the past simple describes a shorter action or event.

• When I met Susan, she was having a drink at a terrace with a friend. 
• We didn’t go out because it was raining

∗The short action in past simple often interrupts the longer action in past continuous.

• He was playing football when he broke his arm. 
• When I went to bed, it was raining. 

∗We use the past simple for completed actions that happened one after the other. Compare:

• When he arrived, she was having a shower. (The action of having a shower started before he arrived)
• When he arrived, she had a shower. (The action of having a shower started after he arrived)

∗We use past continuous with actions that happen at the same time.

• I was studying in my room, while my mother was cooking in the kitchen.

Don’t forget!

When + Simple Past

While+ Past Continuous

some liveworksheets to practise the use of Simple Past and Past Continuous

 

a Genially Quiz bomb

 

some more games by wordwall.net

 

 

and a baamboozle game(to study the sentences click Study, to play a game click Play)

 

 

Used to

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We use used to + verb for talking about states or actions that were true or happened in the past, but are not true or do not happen now.

• London’s nothing like it used to be!
• She used to go away on really long trips.
• The record shop I always used to visit is now a really cool café. (I don’t visit the place now.)

 

(by Lagadmaria)

(by Basilikirakopou)

 

 

Listen to the song “We Used to Be” and do the exercise that follows

 

 

 

 

Φύλλο εργασίας 1

 

Now do this exercise for more practice.