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The Past Simple and Past Continuous

The document discusses the past simple and past continuous tenses. It explains that the past simple is used to narrate completed past actions, events in chronological order, and past habits. The past continuous is used to describe background scenes, ongoing actions that were interrupted, and situations that lasted for some time. Examples of formation and usage are provided for both tenses.

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Valeska Ronquillo
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156 views5 pages

The Past Simple and Past Continuous

The document discusses the past simple and past continuous tenses. It explains that the past simple is used to narrate completed past actions, events in chronological order, and past habits. The past continuous is used to describe background scenes, ongoing actions that were interrupted, and situations that lasted for some time. Examples of formation and usage are provided for both tenses.

Uploaded by

Valeska Ronquillo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Past simple and

Past continuous
Use, form and structure
Past Simple We use the Past Simple tense to narrate:

completed actions in the past


past events in chronological order
past habits and past states

The Stone Age lasted from around 2.5 million years ago to about
5,000 years ago.

Early humans developed the skill of making fire and later discovered
how to create tools from stone.

The Stone Age humans lived in caves for shelter and had a primitive
and rugged appearance.
Past Simple
Form (Affirmative):
Regular verbs: Subject + verb + -ed (e.g., I
played)
Irregular verbs: Subject + irregular verb
(e.g., I went)
Form (Negative):
Subject + did not (didn't) + base form of the
verb (e.g., I didn't play)
Form (Questions):
Did + subject + base form of the verb (e.g.,
Did you play?)
Examples:
Affirmative: She studied English last night.
Negative: They didn't go to the party.
Questions: Did you watch the movie yesterday?
Past We use the Past Continuous tense to:

Continuous set the background to a story


describe a scene or situation that lasted for
some time
refer to an ongoing action which was
interrupted by another one

In the dense forest, a group of Stone Age hunters were stealthily


tracking their prey.
The Stone Age tribes were constantly migrating in search of fertile
lands.
The researchers were excavating a prehistoric site when they
discovered a collection of Stone Age tools.
Past
Form (Affirmative):
Subject + was/were + present participle

Continuous
(verb + -ing) (e.g., I was studying)
Form (Negative):
Subject + was/were not + present participle
(e.g., They weren't working)
Form (Questions):
Was/Were + subject + present participle
(e.g., Were you sleeping?)
Examples:
Affirmative: He was studying when the phone
rang.
Negative: We weren't playing basketball at that
time.
Questions: Was she cooking dinner when you
arrived?

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