Simple Past and Simple Continuous by Mr. Sameh

WELCOME EVERYBODYGood morningI’m Mr. Sameh

soliman

SIMPLE PAST VS. PAST

CONTINUOUS

Use the simple past

for:1 )action that

happened in the past and is. . .

over, done, finished

Use the past continuous for:

)1 action that was in progress at a

specific point in the past OR

2 )focusing on an action that

continued for a long time in the past

Simple Past (Examples)

Action that was completed in the past:Adel went fishing last week.

I worked until 2:00 p.m. yesterday.

My family came to visit me last monday.

*Time Expressions frequently used with the simple past:

yesterday, last ,______ past dates (in 1990), _____ ago, etc.

Past Continuous (Examples)

Action that was in progress at a particular point in the past:

At 2:00 yesterday, Nasser was playing football.

Khalid wasn’t home last night when I called him. I think he was working.

Fatima and her husband were visiting us last week.

Grammar Structure:

Here are some reminders about how to make the simple

past and past continuous:

THE SIMPLE PAST: STRUCTURE

English has two types of verbs in the

past tense: taughtwalkedstudied

gavebecam

ecriedlived

did

Look at the following list of past tense verbs… which verbs are regular, and which are irregular?

Regular verbs Irregular verbs

FOR REGULAR VERBS, SIMPLY USE THE –ED FORM OF THE VERB IN A POSITIVE SENTENCE.

When I was a child, I ___________ the tennis.

Donna ______________ and _______________ in Paris when she was younger.

FOR IRREGULAR VERBS, USE THE CORRECT PAST TENSE FORM IN POSITIVE SENTENCES.

Last week, I ___________ you a letter.

The students _____________ a speech in English. They __________ a great job !

THE VERB BERemember the forms of verb BE for the simple

past tense:

I, He, She, ItWASThey, We, YouWERE

SIMPLE PAST (NEGATIVE)For all verbs (EXCEPT be), use:

1 )Nabil worked yesterday.Nabil didn’t work yesterday.

2) They had a meeting.They didn’t have a meeting.

3) Saleh took classes last year. Saleh didn’t take classes last year.

4) I learned how to drive.I didn’t learn how to drive.

VERB (BE) (Negative)

For this verb ONLY, never use didn’t. Simply ADD the word NOT after the verb.

I was tired.I was NOT tired.She was here.She was NOT here.

They are happy.They are NOT happy.

THE PAST CONTINUOUS:Don’t forget that VERB BE is part of this

structure.

I, He, She, It WASYou, We, They WERE

Examples:My friend was trying to call me last night, but I wasn’t home.

The kids were studying last night at 9:00.

I was cleaning my house all day yesterday .

Past Continuous (Negative)

For this tense, simply ADD the word NOT after the verb BE.

They were syudying last night.They were NOT studyinging last night.

He was yelling at me.He was NOT yelling at me .

Important Note aboutPast Continuous!

Some verbs are NOT typically used in the continuous tense. Instead, we prefer to use

these verbs in the simple tenses (simple present or past) .

These verbs are called STATIVE (or non-action) verbs. Here are some examples:

wantlikelovehateknowneedseehear

believeunderstandhave (possession)forgetrememberbelong

Examples:I liked Rome.

NOT:I was liking Rome.

She had a headache.NOT:She was having a headache.

I knew the answer.NOT:I was knowing the answer.

Using both tenses together:

Sometimes we use both the simple past and the past

continuous together to mean. . .

That one action (simple past) interrupted a continuing action

(past continuous)

.1Reem burned his hand while he was cooking dinner.

=in the middle of cooking dinner, he burned his hand.

2 .When Hassan called, we were having dinner.

=in the middle of eating dinner, Hassan called.

We can use 2 verbs in past continuous to say that two

actions were happening at the same time in the past:

Ex. Jassim was at the park. He was sitting on the grass and

reading.

For more practice. . . 1 )Go to this website:

www.ecc6.blogspot.com2 )On the right side, click on Grammar Site. Then

click on 330.3 )Click on Grammar, and then go down the page

to Verbs. Click on activities for Simple Past and Past Continuous.

These activities give excellentexplanation and practice.

And. . . Remember to ask your teacher or another

classmate if you need help.

Your teacher can give you more explanation,

examples, and exercises if you need them.