
Look at these examples to see how the past continuous and past simple are used.
When I woke up this morning, it was snowing.
I was sleeping when you called me.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
The past continuous and the past simple help us to show how two past actions or situations are connected.
Past simple
The past simple shows us that an action was in the past, not in the present. Regular past simple verbs have -ed at the end (e.g. called, played, arrived). Irregular verbs have a different form, usually with a different vowel sound (e.g. wake → woke, break → broke, feel → felt).
My parents called me yesterday.
I woke up early this morning.
Sam played basketball when he was at university.
We make the negative with didn't and the infinitive verb.
My parents didn't call me yesterday.
I didn't wake up early this morning.
We make the question form with did and then the subject and infinitive verb.
Did you wake up early this morning?
Did Sam play basketball when he was at university?
Past continuous
The past continuous shows us that the action was already in progress at a certain time in the past.
What were you doing at 8 p.m. last night? I was studying.
This means that I started studying before 8 p.m. and I continued after 8 p.m.
The past continuous can also show that an activity was in progress for some time, not just for a moment.
We were cleaning the house all morning.
We make the past continuous with was or were and the -ing form of the verb.
She couldn't come to the party. She was working.
Three years ago, we were living in my home town.
I tried to give him some advice, but he wasn't listening.
What were you doing this time last year?
Past continuous and past simple
When we use these two tenses together, it shows us that the past simple action happened in the middle of the past continuous action, while it was in progress.
While I was studying, I suddenly felt sleepy.
We often use these tenses to show an action interrupting another action.
I broke my leg when I was skiing.
As I was going to work, I saw an old friend.
We were watching television when the power went off.
Can you see a difference in the meaning of these two sentences?
When the guests arrived, Jane was cooking dinner.
When the guests arrived, Jane cooked dinner.
In the first one, Jane started cooking dinner before the guests arrived. We know that because it uses the past continuous. In the second sentence, the guests arrived first and then Jane started cooking.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Hello manu,
Your first example really depends on the context. All we can say from the sentence is that the man no longer has two sons. He may be dead or his sons may be dead; we do not know.
In your second example, had is the normal choice. When a person has died we generally no longer speak of them with present tenses. Thus, a person might say that they had a child (if the child is dead), or that they were married (if they are now divorced or widowed).
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello VegitoBlue,
The past simple action takes place at any time during the past continuous action, not at the exact midpoint.
You are also right in thinking that another time reference that is not the past simple can 'interrupt' the past continuous action. It doesn't have to be at the exact midpoint -- it can be at any time during that period of time.
One of the possible meanings of the continuous aspect is that of duration in time, so you can refer to a point or even period of time within that using some kind of time reference, which includes phrases such as 'at 8pm' or 'When she arrived' (and many others).
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello VegitoBlue,
An example of a point in time would be 'at 8pm', as in the example you gave, though I wouldn't say that 'at 8pm' 'interrupts' 'I was studying'. The way I'd recommend thinking of it is that a continuous action was occurring, and 'at 8pm' refers to one point during that period. Your analysis of the sentence about bathing looks good to me.
Note that 'a point in time' can be many different things. For example, in a text about financial markets in the early 21st century, a sentence like 'Stock prices dropped precipitously in 2008' uses 'in 2008' as a point of time. But 'in 2008' can also be a period of time -- in a sentence such as 'He started five different jobs in 2008', for example, 'in 2008' refers to the course of a year.
The other parts of a text and especially the verb forms tell you whether 'in 2008' refers to a point in time or a period of time.
In a sentence like 'In the early 1990s, I was studying medicine in Birmingham', there is a reference to a larger period of time ('in the early 1990s') and another shorter period of time within it ('I was studying medicine').
Hope this clear it all up for you.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Lal,
Since there is a present result (the smell), the present perfect is most appropriate here. Although the context is limited, the past perfect does not make sense in the sentence as it stands.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Elaine20,
It is possible to use a past form in this sentence, but we would use a past perfect:
...they had already closed...
The past simple does not work with 'already' in this context. You could make the sentence without 'already' (...they closed the shop when I arrived), but that would have a strange meaning. It would suggest that they waited until you arrived and then closed the shop because they didn't like you for some reason!
Out of the two answers possible, were already closing is the correct answer. It tells us that they were already in the process of closing the shop - clearing out the last customers, emptying the tills, turning off the lights etc - when you arrived, so you couldn't buy anything.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Reza
They could all be correct in specific contexts, though 3 is a bit strange.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Jo Ann
A question in the past simple would use 'did' and a question in the present simple would use 'does' or 'do'. This is what makes the time clear.
Does that make sense?
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello itspb008
In the first case, 'at around 8 a.m.' indicates that the question is about an action that was in progress, so the continuous form is the correct one.
In the second case, the continuous form refers to an action that was in progress at the time you arrived at the shop. The past simple with 'already' doesn't make sense here, because it implies that the shop had been closed before you arrived.
Hope this helps.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Monty,
It's hard to comment without knowing the context. Generally, the simple form sees the action as a single event, while the continuous form sees it as an ongoing process or activity. The simple form is more likely if you are talking about your 'achievements' last night, while the continous form is more likely if the action was interrupted or you need to emphasise the work you did (answering the question Why are your eyes so red?, for example).
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello KHiri Abdulnasser
Thanks very much for your message! We're very happy to be able to help our users with questions about what's on our website.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
what's the difference between
I didn't wake up early this morning
&
i didn't woke up early this morning
Hi raviranjan8294053500,
The first sentence is grammatically correct but the second one isn't. "Woke up" is the past simple form, and you use this in an affirmative sentence ("I woke up early this morning), but not in a negative sentence. In a negative sentence, after "didn't", we need to put the infinitive verb form ("wake up").
I hope that helps.
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Goutam Paul
'was' and 'were' are extremely common verb forms. They are nearly always a past simple form of the verb 'be' or used in the past continuous, but there are other related uses (for example, as the past form of 'there is' and 'there are'). I'd recommend that you take the time to learn them well because you will probably see them a lot!
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello wycam10
'this time' (in 1) implies a period of time, which implies an action in progress, which is why the past simple form is not correct here.
In 2, you could say 'had already got' or 'was already getting' or 'got'; which is correct depends on the context and/or what you want to say. 'already' implies a change that had already happened or that was in progress.
In 3, the previous sentence already establishes an action in progress ('driving down') and so in most contexts it would make sense to continue with the idea of an action in progress.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello nataliaoey2912
Re: Grammar test 2 sentence 5, you could indeed also say 'They had already closed the shop when I got there' (using the past perfect) if the shop was indeed closed when you arrived. It's also possible to say 'The shop was already closed' to mean the same thing (though in this case, 'closed' is an adjective). 'They already closed the shop' sounds strange because 'already' refers to a time before you arrived, and when we refer to an earlier time like this, we use the past perfect to show that it was earlier.
'They closed the shop just as I got there' is also possible if they closed and locked the door just as you arrived, that is, in that exact moment.
'They were closing the shop' (the correct answer in this exercise) is grammatically correct. 'close a shop' doesn't refer to just closing and locking the door, it also refers to all of the things you do before you close it (e.g., make sure all the customers are out, turn off the lights, take the cash to deposit it in the bank, etc.), which is indeed a process that can take some time.
As for the other gap you ask about, 'Did it rain' is the correct answer because the response 'No, it was a nice day' wouldn't be appropriate for 'Was it raining'. The past simple refers to the whole day, which is what the response 'It was a nice day' also refers to. The past continuous form ('Was it raining yesterday?') could be correct in a specific context, but since there is no specific context here, the other answer is the best one.
That's quite a long answer! But I hope it helps you make sense of things. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
All the best
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team