Unit 2 – past tenses

It’s easier to understand when we use the

different past tenses if we compare them.
Let’s look at:
1. The past simple and the past continuous.
2. The past simple and the past perfect simple.
3. Used to and would.

When do we use the past

simple and the past
continuous?

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 Function: When do we use them?
1. past simple and past continuous I left the swimming pool at 5pm. I went to
watch a weird film at the cinema at 5.30pm,
What did you do and then I walked home. I was back in the
last night? house by 7.30pm. You?

I was still studying in the library at It was a horror movie. Monsters were
7.30pm! At around 8pm, I was putting my running around the city for the whole
books away when I remembered about film and nothing really happened. It wasn’t
the science test this morning. Why was the very good!
film weird?

past simple past continuous

Look at the
For finished An action in An action interrupted To give background or
different uses of the
actions/events in the progress at a specific by another action in set the scene for an
past simple and
past; or a sequence of time in the past. the past. action/event in a story.
continuous in the
events.
table. Match the
examples in bold I left the swimming I was (still) I was putting my Monsters were
from the pool, I went to watch a studying at books away (when I running around the
conversation to the film, then I walked 7.30pm! remembered...) city for the whole
uses. home. film.

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 Function: When do we use them?
past simple
1. For finished actions/events in the past; or a sequence of events.
These events all
I left the swimming pool at 5pm. I went to watch a weird film at the happened in this
cinema at 5.30pm, and then I walked home. order.
past continuous
7.30pm is a specific time in the past. Look at
1. An action in progress at a specific time in the past. the timeline:
7.30pm
I was (still) studying in the library at 7.30pm!

I was studying.
2. An action interrupted by another action in the past.
I was putting my books away when I remembered about the science test this
morning. The interrupting
action is usually in
3. To give background or set the scene for an action/event in a story. the past simple.

Monsters were running around the city for the whole film. When do we use the past
perfect?
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 Function: When do we use them?
2. past simple and past perfect simple

I didn’t get home until 10.00pm! When I arrived, my brother had already gone to bed. I had only
eaten an apple before coming home and I had never felt so hungry, so I made a sandwich and
went to sleep.

Look at the next part of

the conversation. Now
10.00pm
put these events on the
timeline.

I arrived home. My brother had gone I had eaten

to bed. an apple.
I made a I went to sleep.
sandwich.

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 Function: When do we use them?
past simple and past perfect simple
1. For actions, events and situations that happened before another past action.
The main focus
of the story is
When I arrived, my brother had already gone to bed. here.

10.00pm

My brother had gone to bed. I had eaten an apple. I arrived home. I made a sandwich. I went to sleep.

These two actions/situations happened

before the other actions in blue, so we
use the past perfect simple.
This implies ‘in my life’. It is
2. With ever/never + superlative adjectives. in the past perfect simple
because she is referring to a
feeling she had before the
I had never felt so hungry. main focus of the story (it
happened before 10.00pm). Something to consider…

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Something to consider… Look at the next part of the
conversation.

Earlier in the day, I had been out for lunch with my classmates. We talked about our
English project and made plans for the following week.

Notice how:
We do not continue talking in the past perfect simple after the first sentence because the listener now
knows what time period the speaker is referring to.

The story continues in the past Remember that we don’t use state
simple tense. verbs in the continuous tenses (see
Unit 1 for more details on this).

When do we use used

to and would?
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 Function: When do we use them?
3. used to and would

When I was a teenager, I I remember that! You used

used to rollerblade to to have blue hair and we
school every day. would point at you from the
bus!

An activity/habit.

‘I used to rollerblade every A situation/state.

‘You used to have blue hair.’
day.’ In this sentence, is this In this sentence, is this an
It was repeated/ an activity/habit or a activity/habit or a
a habit. situation/state? situation/state?

‘I used to rollerblade every

Take notice of day.’ Was this a one-time An
when we use event or an action that was ‘We would point at you.’ In activity/habit.
used to and/or repeated/ this sentence, is this an
would here. a habit? activity/habit or a
situation/state?
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 Function: When do we use them?
used to and would
used to would
For past habits or activities. For past habits or activities.
I used to rollerblade to school every day. We would point at you from the bus!
For past situations or states.
You used to have blue hair.

Notice how we can only use used to We can only use would with
for states and situations, e.g. habits and activities. We
CANNOT say, for example,
State: She used to have a Ferrari. ‘I would live in New York’,
as this is a situation, not an
Situation: She used to live in New activity.
York.

How do we form sentences in

the past tenses?

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 Form: How do we make sentences?
past simple past continuous
I left the swimming pool at 5pm. I didn’t eat I was studying. You weren’t
Look at the
anything. Did you enjoy the film? studying. What were you doing?
examples and try
+ subject + verb in past simple + subject + was/were + verb -ing to work out the
structures. The
- subject + did + not + verb bare infinitive - subject + was/were + not + verb -ing first one is done
for you.
? (question word) + did + subject + verb bare infinitive ? (question word) + was/were + subject + verb -ing

past perfect simple used to would

When I arrived home, my brother had gone to bed. I I used to rollerblade to school. I We would point at you from the
hadn’t eaten. Had you eaten? didn’t use to walk. Did you use bus! We wouldn’t laugh.
to walk?
+ subject + had + past participle + subject + used to + bare + subject + would + bare
infinitive infinitive
- subject + had + not + past participle
- subject + did not (didn’t) + - subject + would not
? (question word) + had + subject + past participle use to + bare infinitive (wouldn’t) + bare infinitive

? (qu. word) + did + subject +

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use to + bare infinitive
 Form: How do we make sentences?
past simple past continuous
I left the swimming pool at 5pm. I didn’t eat I was studying. You weren’t studying. In connected
anything. Did you enjoy the film? What were you doing? speech, /wɒz/
becomes /wəz/.
+ subject + verb in past simple + subject + was/were + verb -ing
We do not stress the to in
- subject + did + not + verb bare infinitive - subject + was/were + not + verb -ing used to, so we pronounce
it /tə/.
? (question word) + did + subject + verb bare infinitive ? (question word) + was/were + subject + verb -ing

past perfect simple used to would

When I arrived home, my brother had gone to bed. I I used to rollerblade to school. We would point at you from the
hadn’t eaten. Had you eaten? I didn’t use to walk. Did you bus! We wouldn’t laugh.
use to walk?
+ subject + had + past participle + subject + used to + bare + subject + would + bare
infinitive infinitive
- subject + had + not + past participle
- subject + did not (didn’t) + - subject + would not
? (question word) + had + subject + past participle use to + bare infinitive (wouldn’t) + bare infinitive
Remember that we commonly use
contractions, e.g. didn’t, hadn’t, wasn’t. ? (qu. word) + did + subject + Let’s practise!
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use to + bare infinitive
 Practice activities
Correct the errors in these sentences and justify why. Some of the sentences are correct.
used to
1. My uncle used to be a firefighter. He isn’t very fit now, but he would be when he was younger.
had started
2. Tina started watching the film when I arrived, so I didn’t understand the story at all.

3. It was raining heavily when we left the house.

4. I didn’t use to like vegetables but now I’m vegetarian!

5. A: You didn’t come last night! B: No. When Laura came round, I was already sleeping.
Were you driving called was
6. A: Did you drive when I was calling last night? B: Yes, I did.

7. I looked so tired when I got home because I hadn’t slept very well the night before.
Did move
8. A. Hadn’t your parents moved house last year? B. Yes. They live in the south now.

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