Simple Past Tense
Chapters 6 & 7, Book 5A
New Welcome to English
(Second Edition)
e.g.
People rode in sedan chairs a hundred years ago.
Simple Past Tense to talk about things that
happened in the past.
People used lamps in the evenings fifty years ago.
We use this tense:
Simple Past Tense If there is no action in the
sentence, we use ‘was’ or ‘were’ as the verb.
am / is / are was / were
e.g.
I was short.
This tense has only one word.
Regular verbs
Irregular verbs
There are two kinds of past tense
verbs:
Simple Past Tense
Simple Past TenseRegular verbs Spelling rules Examples
base form + ed walk walked
play played
verbs ending in -e + d like liked
move moved
carry carried
study studied
verbs ending in a consonant + y
change y i + ed
Some verbs ending in a single consonant + the second last letter is a vowel
double the last letter + ed
plan planned
stop stopped
Spelling rules Examples
no change in base form put put
cut cut
Simple Past TenseIrregular verbs
different spelling from the base form
go went
eat ate
dig dug
come came
Base Form Simple Past Tenseget
ride
use
travel
listen
try
stop
enjoy
light
Practice
got
rode
used
travelled
listened
tried
stopped
enjoyed
lit
Simple Past Tense yesterday
Hint words:
last night
last
Sunday
last year
ago
Now
yesterday
last night
last year
last Sunday
50 years ago
1 I _______ (sleep) late last night.
2 He _______ (go) to school by bus yesterday.
3 I _______ (have) a dancing lesson last Tuesday.
4 She _______ (watch) a film yesterday.
5 They _______ (learn) to play the piano five years ago.
6 We ________ (make) a big pizza last Sunday.
Practice slept
went
had
watched
learned
learnt
made
Simple Past Tense We add did not to make the
sentence negative.
Don’t change the verb after did not.
Negative sentences
e.g.
He had a computer lesson last week.
+ not
He did not have a computer lesson last week.
1 I __________ (not go) to school by bus yesterday.
2 She ___________ (not have) a dancing lesson last week.
3 Peter ____________ (not give) any flowers to his mum last Mother’s Day.
4 He ____________ (not watch) the dragon boat races last year.
Practice did not
go
did not have
did not give
did not watch
Simple Past Tense We use did to make questions.
Don’t change the verb after did.
Questions
e.g.Did people watch TV a hundred years ago?
No, they didn’t.
What did Billy drink last night?
He drank a cup of milk last night.
Simple Past TenseQuestions
e.g.
Were they at home last night?
Yes, they were.
Was he happy?
No, he wasn’t.
We can also use was or were to make questions.
1 _____ (be) there any computers a hundred years ago?
No, there ______.
2 _____ you ______ (come) to school by MTR yesterday?
Yes, I ____.
3 When ____ Grandpa ____ (get) married?
He __________ when he was fifteen.
Practice Wer
e
weren’t
Did come
did
did get
got married
4 How ______ you _________ (travel) when you were young?
I _________ (travel) by bus.
5 _____ you _______ (listen) to the radio last night?
No, I _______.
6 ______ (be) there an MTR eighty years ago?
No, there ________.
Practice did travel
Did listen
didn’tWas
wasn’t
travelled
1 Sam always _____ (ride) his bike in the park.
2 It _____ (be) Mother’s Day last Sunday.
3 _____ you ______ (eat) a pizza last night?
No, I ______.
4 The children _______ (play) football every weekend.
Revision ride
s
Did
was
didn’t
eat
play
5 My parents _____ (get) married twenty years ago.
6 ______ (be) Sam and Susan in the office yesterday?
Yes, they ______.
7 Ken ___________ (not do) his homework last night.
8 It ______ (be, not) cold last month.
Revision got
Were
were
did not do
wasn’t