SIMPLE PAST TENSE
Also called Past Simple Tense.
When do we need to use the simple past tense in English?
Remember, this is the basic past tense. We use it whenever we want
to talk about the past.
In order to understand how to make the simple past tense for all
the verbs, lets begin first with the verb To Be, and then with all the
others verbs different than the verb To be (Regular or Irregular).
FORM
TO Be [was / were] depending on the subject
Examples:
You were a student.
She was a student.
Were you a student?
Was she a student?
You were not a student.
She was not a student.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
Simple Past Forms
Declarative / Positive
I was.
You were.
We were.
They were /
He was.
She was.
It was.
Verb To Be
Negative
I was not. / I wasnt
You were not. / You
werent.
We were not. / We
werent.
They were not. / They
werent
He was not. / He wasn
t.
She was not. / She
wasnt.
It was not. / It wasnt.
Question
Was I ?
Were you?
Were we?
Were they ?
Was he ?
Was she ?
Was it ?
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
Simple Past Forms for Verbs others than the Verb To Be.
(Regular or Irregular)
a.) Regular verb
[VERB + ed] With most of the regular verbs, the simple past is created
simply by adding ed. However, with some regular verbs, you need to
add d, or you need to know those rules in order to make those changes.
Examples:
You played soccer. / Did you play soccer? / You did not play soccer.
Declarative / Positive
Negative
Question
I played
You played.
We played.
They played.
He, She, It played.
I did not play.
You did not play.
We did not play.
They did not play.
He, She, It did not
play.
Did I play?
Did you play?
Did we play?
Did they play?
Did he, she, it
play?
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
Simple Past Forms for Verbs others than the Verb To Be. (Regular
or Irregular)
b.) Irregular verb
[Simple Past of Irregular Verb] With the irregular verbs, you have to
know the simple past for each one of them since there are not rules for
creating the simple past. Note that you only use the simple past form in
Declarative/Positive statements. In Negative and question did indicates
the simple past.
Examples:
You ate an apple. / Did you eat an apple ? / You did not eat an apple.
Declarative / Positive
Negative
Question
I ate
You ate.
We ate.
They ate.
He, She, It ate.
I did not eat.
You did not eat.
We did not eat.
They did not eat.
He, She, It did not eat.
Did I eat?
Did you eat?
Did we eat?
Did they eat?
Did he, she, it eat?
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
GENERAL USES OF THE 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.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
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.
Yesterday I went to the library, met a friend for lunch, and played
tennis.
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?
He went to a caf, sat down and lit a cigarette.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
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.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
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.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
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.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
IMPORTANT. When-Clauses Happen First
Clauses are groups of words which have meaning but are often
not complete sentences. Some clauses begin with the word "when"
such as "when I dropped my pen..." or "when class began..." These
clauses are called when-clauses, and they are very important.
The examples below contain when-clauses.
Examples:
When I paid her one dollar, she answered my question.
She answered my question when I paid her one dollar.
When-clauses are important because they always happen first
when both clauses are in the Simple Past. Both of the examples
above mean the same thing: first, I paid her one dollar, and then, she
answered my question. It is not important whether "when I paid her
one dollar" is at the beginning of the sentence or at the end of the
sentence.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
IMPORTANT. When-Clauses Happen First (Cont.)
However, the example below has a different meaning. First, she
answered my question, and then, I paid her one dollar.
Example:
I paid her one dollar when she answered my question.
ADVERB PLACEMENT
The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs
such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.
Examples:
You just called Debbie.
Did you just call Debbie?
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
ACTIVE / PASSIVE
Examples:
Tom repaired the car. ACTIVE
The car was repaired by Tom. PASSIVE
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
