1. PAST SIMPLE & CONTINUOUS

2. Past Simple Use it for… Signal words B E Completed past actions.
Form
Past Simple
Use
Completed past actions.
One completed action after another.
A past habit or regular past event.
I/YOU/WE/THEY/HE/SHE/IT +
S + verb in the SIMPLE PAST
Regular verbs add –ed
Spelling rules
*1 syllable verbs (CVC) double the last consonant.
fit – fitted/stop – stopped
*1 syllable verbs ending in consonant + -y change –y to –i and add- ed.
cry – cried / try – tried
Irregular verbs  check verb list
Use it for…
Signal words
last year/month/Sunday
In 1992/June
ago
The past of verb to be is WAS/WERE
+ I was at home/They were at home
He wasn’t at home /You weren’t at home
? Were you at home?/Was he at home? B E ?
Did + S + verb (inf)
Did she try? -
S + didn’t + verb (inf)
She didn’t try

3. YOU/WE/THEY WERE/WEREN’T
Past Continuous
Use
Form
Something which was in progress at a time in the past.
Something which was going on in the background which set the scene for a specific event or action. +
S + WAS/WERE + ing
I was reading a book
She was playing computer games
They were listening to music.
Use it for… ?
WAS/WERE +S+ ing
WAS I reading a book?
WAS she playing computer games?
WERE they listening to music.?
Remember! -
S + WASN’T/WEREN’T + ing
I wasn’t reading a book
She wasn’t playing computer games
They weren’t listening to music.
I WAS/WASN’T
HE/SHE/IT WAS -WASN’T
YOU/WE/THEY WERE/WEREN’T

4. Past Simple and Continuous
We use the past simple and past continuous together to talk about an action that was in progress (past cont.) when another one happened (past simple)
We often use WHEN before the action in the past simple and WHILE or AS before the action in the past continuous
She was sleeping WHEN the phone rang.
WHEN the phone rang, she was sleeping.
The phone rang WHILE I was sleeping.
WHILE I was sleeping, the phone rang.