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Tutorial on Simple Past Tense and Past Continuous Tenses


Understanding "Was" and "Were"


**"Was"** and **"were"** are the past forms of the verb "to be." We use them to describe states or actions that occurred in the past.


- **Use "was"** for:

  - Singular subjects: I, he, she, it

    - Example: *He was at the party last night.*

Negative: He wasn't at the party last night.

Question: Was he at the party last night?

    

- **Use "were"** for:

  - Plural subjects: you, we, they

    - Example: *They were happy to see each other.*

Negative: They weren't happy to see each other.

Question: Were happy to see each other?


Talking About Finished Actions in the Past


In English, to talk about finished actions that happened in the past, we use the **simple past tense**. Here’s how to form it:


- **Regular Verbs**: Add -ed to the base form.

    - Example: *play* → *played* 

    - Sentence: *She played soccer yesterday.*

Negative: She didn't play soccer yesterday.

Question: Did she play soccer yesterday?


Spelling rules: Verb ends in "e": Add -d (love → loved)

Vowel + single consonant: Double the consonant (stop → stopped)

Consonant + "y": Change "y" to "i" + -ed (cry → cried)


- **Irregular Verbs**: Each irregular verb has a unique past form that you need to memorize.

    - Example: *go* → *went*

    - Sentence: *We went to the beach last summer.*

Negative: We didn't go to the beach last summer.

Question: Did you go to the beach last summer?


Here is a list of 20 commonly used irregular verbs along with their past forms:


1. **be** → **was/were**

2. **become** → **became**

3. **begin** → **began**

4. **break** → **broke**

5. **bring** → **brought**

6. **buy** → **bought**

7. **choose** → **chose**

8. **come** → **came**

9. **do** → **did**

10. **drink** → **drank**

11. **eat** → **ate**

12. **fall** → **fell**

13. **feel** → **felt**

14. **find** → **found**

15. **get** → **got**

16. **give** → **gave**

17. **go** → **went**

18. **know** → **knew**

19. **see** → **saw**

20. **take** → **took**


Using the Past Continuous Tense (Was/Were -ing)


The **past continuous tense** describes actions that were ongoing in the past. We form it by using "was" or "were" + the -ing form of the verb.


- **Examples**:

    - Singular: *I was reading a book.*

    - Plural: *They were watching a movie.*


When to Use Both Tenses Together


The past simple and past continuous tenses often work together to show a completed action and an ongoing action happening simultaneously in the past. Use the conjunctions **"when"** and **"while"** to connect these actions.


1. **"When"** introduces a completed action:

    - Example: *I was eating dinner **when** the phone rang.*


2. **"While"** introduces an ongoing action:

    - Example: *I was studying **while** he was playing music.*


Examples Connecting Past Simple and Past Continuous


1. **Past Continuous and Simple Past with "when":**

   - *She was walking in the park **when** it started to rain.*

     - (Ongoing: *walking* | Completed: *started to rain*)


2. **Past Continuous and Simple Past with "while":**

   - *They were playing chess **while** their friends were watching.*

     - (Ongoing: *playing* | Ongoing: *watching*)


Summary


- Use **was** and **were** to indicate past states or actions.

- Use the **simple past tense** for finished actions, with regular verbs adding -ed and irregular verbs having unique forms.

- Use the **past continuous tense** for ongoing actions in the past, formed with was/were + -ing.

- Use **"when"** and **"while"** to connect actions, showing their relationship in time.


Practice


1. Fill in the blanks with "was" or "were".

   - She ___ at home last night.

   - We ___ excited for the trip.


2. Convert these sentences into the past tense:

   - I (go) to the store. → ________________________________________

   - They (play) outside. → ________________________________________


3. Create sentences using past continuous and the conjunctions "when" or "while".

Exercise: Past Forms of Irregular Verbs


Part 1: Fill in the Blanks

Fill in the blanks with the correct past tense form of the irregular verb given in parentheses.


1. Yesterday, I _____ (go) to the grocery store.

2. She _____ (buy) a beautiful dress for the party.

3. We _____ (eat) pizza for dinner last night.

4. He _____ (take) his dog for a walk in the afternoon.

5. They _____ (see) a movie over the weekend.

6. I _____ (give) my friend a birthday present.

7. The child _____ (drink) a glass of milk.

8. My brother _____ (drive) to work very early this morning.

9. She _____ (meet) her old friend after many years.

10. He _____ (swim) across the river yesterday.


Part 2: Multiple Choice

Choose the correct past tense form of the irregular verb to complete the sentence.


1. We finally _____ the top of the mountain.

   a) reach

   b) reached

   c) reacheded

   d) reaches


2. The teacher _____ the answer to the question.

   a) know

   b) knew

   c) knowing

   d) knowed


3. The cat _____ under the bed when it was scared.

   a) hide

   b) hidded

   c) hid

   d) hiding


4. She _____ all her money on that concert ticket.

   a) spent

   b) spend

   c) spended

   d) spendt


5. The bird _____ away before we could get a closer look.

   a) flown

   b) fly

   c) flew

   d) flying


Part 3: Sentence Transformation

Rewrite the following sentences in the past tense.


1. She sings beautifully at the concert.

   - __________________________________


2. They take the early train to New York.

   - __________________________________


3. I feel happy about the news.

   - __________________________________


4. He writes a letter to his grandmother.

   - __________________________________


5. We go to the beach every summer.

   - __________________________________


Part 4: Writing 

Write a short paragraph (3-4 sentences) about what you did last weekend. Make sure to use at least five different irregular verbs in their past forms.


---


 Answers


#### Part 1: 

1. went

2. bought

3. ate

4. took

5. saw

6. gave

7. drank

8. drove

9. met

10. swam


#### Part 2:

1. b) reached

2. b) knew

3. c) hid

4. a) spent

5. c) flew


#### Part 3:

1. She sang beautifully at the concert.

2. They took the early train to New York.

3. I felt happy about the news.

4. He wrote a letter to his grandmother.

5. We went to the beach every summer.


#### Part 4:

Last weekend, I went to the park with my friends. We saw a group of people playing soccer and decided to join them. After the game, we ate ice cream and talked about our plans for the summer. In the evening, I wrote in my journal about the fun we had. 


Simple Past or Past Continuous 


Part 1: Multiple Choice


Choose the correct form of the verb.


1. When I (was, were) young, I (played, was playing) soccer every day.

2. She (studied, was studying) for her exams all night yesterday.

3. While we (watched, were watching) TV, the power (went, was going) out.

4. They (built, were building) the house while we (lived, were living) in another city.

5. He (drove, was driving) to the office when he (remembered, was remembering) he forgot his wallet.


Part 2: Fill in the Blanks


Fill in the blanks with the correct past simple or past continuous form of the verb in parentheses.


1. I (read) __________ a book when the phone (ring) __________.

2. It (rain) __________ when we (leave) __________ the house this morning.

3. Marta (cook) __________ dinner while John (clean) __________ the house.

4. They (not visit) __________ us last summer because they (travel) __________ in Europe.

5. When I (see) __________ him at the party, he (talk) __________ to Sarah.


Part 3: Correct the Sentence


Each sentence has a mistake. Correct the sentence.


1. They was playing basketball when it started to rain.

2. I were studying in my room when you called.

3. While she walked to school, she found a wallet.

4. We was cooking dinner when the storm began.

5. She watched TV when I knocked on the door.


Part 4: Sentence Transformation


Rewrite the sentences using either past simple or past continuous.


1. As I did my homework, the cat jumped on the table.  

   ________________________________.


2. She washed the dishes, then she cooked dinner.  

   ________________________________.


3. They had dinner at the restaurant at 8 pm.  

   ________________________________.


4. During the meeting, John took notes.  

   ________________________________.


5. She read a book all afternoon.  

   ________________________________.


Part 5: Story Completion


Complete the following story using the appropriate past simple or past continuous form of the verbs provided.


Last Saturday, while I (walk) ___________ to the park, I (see) ___________ a strange bird. It (sit) ___________ on a branch, and it (sing) ___________ a beautiful song. Suddenly, a cat (jump) ___________ out of the bushes and (scare) ___________ the bird away. I (feel) ___________ sad because I (enjoy) ___________ the song. Later, while I (relax) ___________ on a bench, I (meet) ___________ an old friend from school. We (talk) ___________ for hours until it (get) ___________ dark.

Listen and check your answers 


King Arthur Story

Listen to the story of King Arthur and complete the sentences. (Track 10)
1. King Uther __________________ dangerous days because Saxons were attacking his land.
2. King Uther _____________________ his son to his magician Merlin to keep him safe.
3. While Arthur was living with Kay, Merlin always _____________________ him.
4. When King Uther died, no one _____________________ he had a son.
5. A mysterious stone ____________________ in the garden of St. Paul’s cathedral.
6. When Arthur _____________________ 15 years old, his foster brother Kay had his first knights’ tournament.

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