Simple Past
Beginner level
Julio 2010
Universidad Tecnológica de Nezahualcóyotl
Alberto Francisco Juárez Oliva.
Simple Past
USE 1 Completed Action in the Past
Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.
Examples:
· I saw a movie yesterday.
· I didn't see a play yesterday.
· Last year, I traveled to Japan.
· Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.
· Did you have dinner last night?
· She washed her car.
· He didn't wash his car.
USE 2 A Series of Completed Actions
We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.
Examples:
· I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.
· He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
· Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs?
USE 3 Duration in Past
The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.
Examples:
· I lived in Brazil for two years.
· Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
· They sat at the beach all day.
· They did not stay at the party the entire time.
· We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.
· A: How long did you wait for them?
B: We waited for one hour.
USE 4 Habits in the Past
The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used to." To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.
Examples:
· I studied French when I was a child.
· He played the violin.
· He didn't play the piano.
· Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid?
· She worked at the movie theater after school.
· They never went to school, they always skipped class.
USE 5 Past Facts or Generalizations
The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts or generalizations which are no longer true. As in USE 4 above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the expression "used to."
Examples:
· She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing.
· He didn't like tomatoes before.
· Did you live in Texas when you were a kid?
· People paid much more to make cell phone calls in the past.
Past Continuous
FORM
[was/were + present participle “ing”]
Examples:
· You were studying when she called.
· Were you studying when she called?
· You were not studying when she called.
USE 1 Interrupted Action in the Past
Use the Past Continuous to indicate that a longer action in the past was interrupted. The interruption is usually a shorter action in the Simple Past. Remember this can be a real interruption or just an interruption in time.
Examples:
· I was watching TV when she called.
· When the phone rang, she was writing a letter.
· While we were having the picnic, it started to rain.
· What were you doing when the earthquake started?
· I was listening to my iPod, so I didn't hear the fire alarm.
· You were not listening to me when I told you to turn the oven off.
· While John was sleeping last night, someone stole his car.
· Sammy was waiting for us when we got off the plane.
· While I was writing the email, the computer suddenly went off.
· A: What were you doing when you broke your leg?
B: I was snowboarding.
USE 2 Specific Time as an Interruption
In USE 1, described above, the Past Continuous is interrupted by a shorter action in the Simple Past. However, you can also use a specific time as an interruption.
Examples:
· Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner.
· At midnight, we were still driving through the desert.
· Yesterday at this time, I was sitting at my desk at work.
IMPORTANT
In the Simple Past, a specific time is used to show when an action began or finished. In the Past Continuous, a specific time only interrupts the action.
Examples:
· Last night at 6 PM, I ate dinner.
I started eating at 6 PM.
· Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner.
I started earlier; and at 6 PM, I was in the process of eating dinner.
USE 3 Parallel Actions
When you use the Past Continuous with two actions in the same sentence, it expresses the idea that both actions were happening at the same time. The actions are parallel.
Examples:
· I was studying while he was making dinner.
· While Ellen was reading, Tim was watching television.
· Were you listening while he was talking?
· I wasn't paying attention while I was writing the letter, so I made several mistakes.
· What were you doing while you were waiting?
· Thomas wasn't working, and I wasn't working either.
· They were eating dinner, discussing their plans, and having a good time.
USE 4 Atmosphere
In English, we often use a series of parallel actions to describe the atmosphere at a particular time in the past.
Example:
· When I walked into the office, several people were busily typing, some were talking on the phones, the boss was yelling directions, and customers were waiting to be helped. One customer was yelling at a secretary and waving his hands. Others were complaining to each other about the bad service.
USE 5 Repetition and Irritation with "Always"
The Past Continuous with words such as "always" or "constantly" expresses the idea that something irritating or shocking often happened in the past. The concept is very similar to the expression "used to" but with negative emotion. Remember to put the words "always" or "constantly" between "be" and "verb+ing."
Examples:
· She was always coming to class late.
· He was constantly talking. He annoyed everyone.
· I didn't like them because they were always complaining.
While vs. When
Clauses are groups of words which have meaning, but are often not complete sentences. Some clauses begin with the word "when" such as "when she called" or "when it bit me." Other clauses begin with "while" such as "while she was sleeping" and "while he was surfing." When you talk about things in the past, "when" is most often followed by the verb tense Simple Past, whereas "while" is usually followed by Past Continuous. "While" expresses the idea of "during that time." Study the examples below. They have similar meanings, but they emphasize different parts of the sentence.
Examples:
· I was studying when she called.
· While I was studying, she called.
Alberto Juárez Oliva 09/06/2010 Universidad Tecnológica de Nezahualcóyotl
Question / Affirmative / NegativeDid you read the newspaper?
Erica wrote a note
Joseph didn’t have many problems
Did Bob ride his motorcycle
Loren and Jessie went to Acapulco last week
My brothers were not at home Yesterday
Did the bride kiss her mother?
He was worried about the test
Silvia didn’t break my best friend heart
Did she cry all night long?
He spoke English all the time
They didn’t come to school today
Did it rain last night?
Alberto Juárez Oliva 09/06/2010 Universidad Tecnológica de Nezahualcóyotl
Complete the dialogue using the Past Simple tense.
Robert: Hi Alice, what ______you ______(do) last weekend?
Alice: I ______(do) a lot of things. On Saturday, I ______(go) shopping.
Robert: What ______you ______(buy)?
Alice: I ______(buy) some new clothes. I also ______(play) tennis.
Robert: Who ______you ______(play)?
Alice: I ______(play) Tom.
Robert: ______you ______(win)?
Alice: Of course I ______(win)!
Robert: What ______you ______(do) after your tennis match.
Alice: Well, I ______(go) home and ______(take) a shower and then ______(go) out.
Robert: ______you ______(eat) in a restaurant?
Alice: Yes, my friend Jacky and I ______(eat) at 'The Good Fork'
Robert: ______you ______(enjoy) your dinner?
Alice: Yes, we ______(enjoy) our dinner very much thank you. We also ______(drink) some wonderful wine!
Robert: Unfortunately, I ______(go – NEGATIVE) out this weekend. I
______(eat – NEGATIVE) in a restaurant and I ______(play –NEGATIVE) tennis.
Alice: What ______you ______(do)?
Robert: I ______(stay) home and ______(study) for my test!
Alice: Poor you!
2. WAS or WERE?
1. A man ___ walking his dog. 2. A lot of people ___ shopping.
a. was a. was
b. were b. were
3. Tom and Sarah ___ watching television. 4. Two teenage boys ___ fighting.
a. was a. was
b. were b. were
5. Sally ___ jogging with her friend this morning. 6. Another man ___ watching her.
a. was a. was
b. were b. were
7. The students ___ using the computer lab. 8. The young newly weds __ sleeping.
a. was a. was
b. were b. were
9. A baby ___ crying. 10. A lot of people ___ working.
a. was a. was
b. were b. were
3. Fill in the blanks with the simple past or past continuous form of the verbs.
A: Hi, Mary. I ______(see/neg.) you at school last Monday.
B: Hello, Bob. I ______(come/neg.) on Monday. I wasn't ______(feel) well, so I ______(decide) to go to the doctor.
A: Oh! ______(be) it serious?
B: No, the doctor ______(examine) me and ______(tell) me I ______(have) the flu. He ______(prescribe) some medicine and ______(tell) me to go home and rest.
A: ______you ______(stay) home all day last Monday?
B: No, only in the morning. I ______(have) to work in the afternoon, and guess what?
A: What?
B: When a friend ______(drive) me home, he ______(crash) his car. He ______(see/neg.) the red light.
A: ______anyone ______(get) hurt?
B: Thank God, nobody ______(do).
A: I'm happy to hear that. Well, Mary, I have to rush now. While I ______(listen) to your story, I ______(remember) that my wife ______(ask) me to go to the mechanic to get our car. See you later. Take care.
A Lovely Day
Yesterday (1)______a lovely day. I (2)______on a picnic with my family. We (3)______to Oatly Park. The weather was warm and (4)______. We (5)______on the grass under a tree and (6)______a delicious lunch. It was very pleasant.
After lunch, we (7)______for a walk around the park and (8)______. On the way home we (9)______at a cafe for afternoon tea. It (10)______delicious, too. We had a very nice day.
These are the words to choose from:
go sunny sit have drive go be be talk stop
READING COMPREHENSION
Out To Lunch
All morning, all that Ted could think about was eating lunch. He got up late and did not get a chance to eat breakfast before the school bus arrived. Ted was hoping to have a Ham sandwich. Ham is Ted's favorite lunchmeat. Ted also enjoys apples, but doesn't like the yellow or green ones. At lunchtime Ted ran to the cafeteria. When he got in line he asked for Ham sandwich, but they only had Tuna and Turkey. Ted is allergic to Tuna, so he asked for the Turkey. He ate the sandwich so fast that he gave himself the hiccups.
ANSWER THE QUESTIONS:
1. Why is Ted so hungry for lunch?
a. He ate too much b. He didn't eat breakfast today
c. He didn't eat lunch yesterday d. He didn't eat dinner yesterday
2. What is Ted's favorite lunch meat?
a. ham b. turkey c. salami d. bologna
3. What color apple might you find in Ted's lunch box?
a. yellow b. green c. red d. Ted doesn't like apples
4. Which lunch item should Ted never eat?
a. ham b. turkey c. apples d. tuna.
Find Someone Who...
went to a movie this week ______didn't take a bath today______
got up before 7:00 AM today______didn't wear earrings today______
was born in May______played basketball last week______
went to Acapulco last year______kissed somebody today______
didn't have breakfast today______ate a big breakfast today______
drank tea yesterday afternoon______watched TV last night ______
A Terrible Day
Yesterday (1)______a terrible day. I (2)______to a barbeque at a friend's place. I (3)______the bus to Fairfield but the bus was an hour (4)______. Because I (5)______late, everyone had already started eating. So, there (6)______no food left. I was very (7)______
On the way home, the bus (8)______a flat tire. Then I had to walk home but it (9)______to rain. I (10)______very wet. I had a terrible day yesterday.
These are the words to choose from:
arrive be get start take go have be late angry
Alberto Juárez Oliva 09/06/2010 Universidad Tecnológica de Nezahualcóyotl
Alberto Juárez Oliva 09/06/2010 Universidad Tecnológica de Nezahualcóyotl