Past simple

Learn how to use the past simple to talk about the past, and do the exercises to practise using it.

Level: beginner

With most verbs, the past tense is formed by adding –ed:

called liked wanted worked

But there are a lot of irregular past tense forms in English. Here are the most common irregular verbs in English, with their past tense forms:

Base form Past tense
be
begin
break
bring
buy
build
choose
come
cost
cut
do
draw
drive
eat
feel
find
get
give
go
have
hear
hold
keep
know
leave
lead
let
lie
lose
make
mean
meet
pay
put
run
say
sell
send
set
sit
speak
spend
stand
take
teach
tell
think
understand
wear
win
write
was/were
began
broke
brought
bought
built
chose
came
cost
cut
did
drew
drove
ate
felt
found
got
gave
went
had
heard
held
kept
knew
left
led
let
lay
lost
made
meant
met
paid
put
ran
said
sold
sent
set
sat
spoke
spent
stood
took
taught
told
thought
understood
wore
won
wrote

We use the past tense to talk about:

  • something that happened once in the past:

I met my wife in 1983.
We went to Spain for our holidays.
They got home very late last night.

  • something that happened several times in the past:

When I was a boy, I walked a mile to school every day.
We swam a lot while we were on holiday.
They always enjoyed visiting their friends.

  • something that was true for some time in the past:

I lived abroad for ten years.
He enjoyed being a student.
She played a lot of tennis when she was younger.

  • we often use expressions with ago with the past simple:

I met my wife a long time ago.

Past simple 1
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Past simple 2
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Past simple questions and negatives

We use did to make questions with the past simple:

Did she play tennis when she was younger?
Did you live abroad?
When did you meet your wife?
Where did you go for your holidays?

But questions with who often don't use did:

Who discovered penicillin?
Who wrote Don Quixote?

Past simple questions 1
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Past simple questions 2
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We use didn't (did not) to make negatives with the past simple:

They didn't go to Spain this year.
We didn't get home until very late last night.
I didn't see you yesterday.
 

Past simple negatives 1
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Past simple negatives 2
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Level: intermediate

Past simple and hypotheses

We can also use the past simple to refer to the present or future in hypotheses (when we imagine something). See these pages:

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Submitted by AboodKh9 on Sat, 27/05/2023 - 19:48

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Hello team!
I have a question about using "when" with simple past.
Can I use "when" with simple past in the two clauses:
When I entered the room, my brother watched the movie.
Do the two clauses happened at the same time or one clause happened before the other one?

Thank you in advance

Hello AbooodKh9,

Generally, 'when' in this kind of context indicates the moment that an action begins. For example:

She made a cup of coffee when I arrived - this means that the coffee making began only when I arrived.

When we want to show that an action was in progress at the time of another event, we use when or while with the past continuous:

She was making a cup of coffee when I arrived - this means that the coffee making began before I arrived and that she was in the middle of it.

 

 

Thus, I would say there are two possibilities for your example:

When I entered the room, my brother started to watch the movie - he began only once I was there.

When I entered the room, my brother was watching the movie - he was in the middle of it at the time I arrived.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by KH_M_K on Fri, 26/05/2023 - 04:22

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Hello
Which sentence is correct?
1- After the plane had landed, we collected our luggage.
2- After the plane landed, we collected our luggage.

Hi KH_M_K,

They are both correct! Sentence 1 uses the past perfect, but people often simplify by just using the past simple. This happens especially if the order that the actions happened is already shown in some other way. Here, the word "after" shows this, as well as the order of mentioning the actions in the sentence (the first action is mentioned first, and the second action is mentioned second).

Does that make sense?

Jonathan

LearnEnglish team

Submitted by AboodKh9 on Sat, 04/03/2023 - 19:06

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Hello everyone! I just want to ask a question about "when"
Can I use any tense after when? I know that we can use it before(present simple and past simple) but I want to know If we can use it before the other tenses.

For example:
1) When I had arrived, I met my friend. OR When I had arrived, I had met my friend.
2) When I have studied English, I found many job opportunities. OR When I have studied English, I have found many job opportunities.
And so on...

Thank you in advance.

Hello AboodKh9,

1) When I arrived is correct here. We could use the past perfect (had arrived) with 'once' or 'after', not 'when'.

 

2) I'm not sure what you mean here. When I studied (not have studied)... I found (not have found) is correct in this context. You could use the present perfect to talk about repeated experiences, however, with the sense 'every time' or 'whenever'.

For example: I've visited Germany many times in my life and when (whenever/every time) I've been there, I've found the people to be very kind.

 

You can find a useful summary here:

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/when

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Thank you so much for your response.
But here I am asking in general (not just about the examples I typed above) about using "when as a conjunction" before the 12 tenses in English.
For example:

When + present perfect
When + present perfect continuous
When + past perfect
When + past perfect continuous
When + simple future
...etc

I will be grateful for you
Excuse me if I didn't get it very well.

Hello AboodKh9,

There is no general rule here - it really depends on the context and what the speaker wants to say. While some forms are unusual (will after when is very unusual, for example), they are not impossible. All of these, for example, are correct:

When I've finished, I'll come and help you.

When I've been working on this, I've generally found a small team better than a large one.

She had been talking when he had been talking, and that's why hadn't understood each other.

etc.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Gulnara_BC on Fri, 30/09/2022 - 08:38

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Hello!
Could you please clarify the use of Past Simple in this sentence: 'The project was started maybe a year ago'. Is it acceptable to use Present Perfect here meaning that the project is still ongoing, or Past Simple is referred to just one completed past action -- started? Or it's better to rephrase the whole sentence -- 'It's been a year since the project has (been) started'? Is it acceptable or are there any exceptions for using 'ago' with Present Perfect? The main emphasis is that the project is not finished yet.
Thank you in advance!

Hello Gulnara_BC,

The present perfect is not correct in either of these sentences. 'a year ago' suggests a past time that isn't closely connected with the present and so the past simple is the best choice here.

There may exist some situations where it's possible to use the present perfect with 'ago', but I can't think of one off the top of my head.

The past simple does not imply that the project is finished. The action of starting is an action that we generally think of as taking a relatively short time, and then of course the project can continue for an indefinite length.

Hope this helps.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

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Submitted by Ahmed Imam on Mon, 26/09/2022 - 05:01

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Hello Team. Is there any difference between "How long ago" and "When" to ask about past events? For example, in the following question, which one is correct? Why?
- (How long ago - When) did you start studying English?
Thank you.

Hello Ahmed Imam,

'how long ago' asks for a specific kind of answer, i.e. an expression with 'ago', whereas 'when' is a bit more general.

In practice, though, the person who answers is free to answer as they wish. In other words, they could just as easily say 'when I was ten years old' or 'last summer' or 'ten years ago' in response to 'how long ago' as 'when'.

Hope this helps.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Hello Ahmed Imam,

Yes, that's right: both of those formulations are correct.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by melvinthio on Thu, 01/09/2022 - 04:23

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Hi Jonathan,
Thanks so much for your prompt reply.
So, in informal speaking, we could ask questions such as:
- How's the film yesterday?
- Why's he angry last night?
- What's he doing when you called him?
- When's the next train arrive?
- What's it mean?
- How's he look?

[1] Is this kind of contraction also used by educated people in daily conversations?

[2] Could we use this kind of contraction ('s) of "was" and "does" in daily communication with our coworkers or boss?

Your remarks would be highly appreciated.

Best regards,

Hi melvinthio,

[1] Yes, if they are in informal situations. I don't think the education level is relevant here.

[2] Potentially, yes, but I can't really say more than that. It depends on the expectations about formality, clarity and interpersonal communication that people in your particular workplace have.

Jonathan

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by melvinthio on Wed, 31/08/2022 - 09:29

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Hi Jonathan,
Merriam Webster's online dictionary cites that the past tense "was" can also be contracted to ('s).
E.g. : When's the last time you ate?
[1] Can we use the contraction in general or it's only used in the fixed phrase of "When's the last time......?"

The dictionary also cites that ('s) is also the contraction of "does".
E.g. : What's he want ?
[2] Can we use this contraction in general with other question words (where, why, who, how) as well ?

Hi melvinthio,

You can find these contractions in other sentences too, not just these ones. However, it's important to know that these contractions are normally used (1) in informal speaking, and (2) in questions. Because of their use in informal speaking, some people may consider them incorrect. It's also good to be aware of the potential for confusion (e.g. "What's" might be initially understood as "What is" or "What has").

I hope that helps.

Jonathan

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Faii on Tue, 10/05/2022 - 16:58

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Hi
In this following sentence "I took care that he should not hear me "
Does here "he should not hear me " refer to past ?Can we use "should" in past tense?What about if we use "would not" instead of "should not" here ?

Hi Faii,

Yes, it does. (If referring to the future, "shall" can replace "should".) In this sentence, "would" and "should" have the same meaning but "should" is a bit more formal in style.

I hope that helps.

Jonathan

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Sandy Nguyen on Sun, 17/04/2022 - 09:55

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Hi
To know about someone's food hobby we ask What's your favourite food?
if someone ask me " What was your favourite food?" , is it different from
"What is your favourite food?"

Hello Sandy,

It's the same question, but asks about the past instead of the present. Unless the other person says more -- for example, "when you were a child" or "when you studied at university", it's difficult to know which time in the past they mean.

Does that make sense?

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Timothy555 on Sat, 25/12/2021 - 15:37

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Hi,

I have another question. This article states one of the uses of the simple past tense as being "something that was true for some time in the past". I have two queries concerning this.

Firstly, does "something" refer to an event (i.e. an action or state/situation)?

Secondly, may I know if this explanation of the simple past tense (i.e. "something that was true for some time in the past") means the same as "something that took place over a complete period of time in the past"?

Thirdly, some examples that I can think of that fit this explanation of "something that was true for some time in the past" include sentences as follows. May I know if my understanding is correct?

I lived in China for two years.
Tom studied German for five years.
They sat in class all day.
They stayed at the party the entire time.
We talked on the phone for fifty minutes.

Regards,
Tim

Hello Tim,

Yes, 'something' could refer to a state or an action/event.

The past simple is not limited in duration. It can describe something which happens in a microsecond or something which lasts for millions of years. However, the action is seen as a unitary block in the sense that it is not interrupted (the contrast here is with the past continuous).

All of your examples are fine.

Peter
The LearnEnglish Team

Hi, what about my second question: may I know if this explanation of the simple past tense (i.e. "something that was true for some time in the past") means the same as "something that took place over a complete period of time in the past"?

Submitted by Timothy555 on Sat, 25/12/2021 - 08:16

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Hi,

This article, like many others you have on your website, are about the grammar tenses of british english, correct? While I know there are some differences between british and american english, such as in terms of speeling of certain words, I wish to know whether there are any differences between british and american english in terms of the uses of the various grammar tenses (e.g. simple past - as with this article, or any of the other english tenses, for example, past continuous, simple future, present perfect simple/continuous, past perfect etc).

Regards,
Tim

Hello Tim,

Yes, our focus is on British English, though really the grammatical differences between American and British English are very few and minor. I'd suggest you have a look at our page on this topic (https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/intermediate-to-upper-i…), where you'll see, for example, one minor difference in the way the past simple and present perfect are used. There are undoubtedly others, but we believe these five are the most common ones.

While the way British speakers use English grammar may occasionally strike American ears as a little strange, it would be extremely unusual for Americans not to understand Brits because of their grammar, or vice versa. And when there is confusion, it's usually more a matter of pronunciation or vocabulary, though that's also fairly uncommon in my experience.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

thank you. So firstly, from the article, regarding the comparison between american and british english in terms of using the present perfect simple and simple past, while present perfect simple is intended to express actions completed in the past but which have an effect on the present - and that this use is recognized and accepted as grammatical by both american and british english, american english tends to use the simple past more often. May I know if I have summarized this correctly?

Secondly, am I right to say that besides the present perfect simple tense vis-a-vis the simple past tense discussion as covered above, there are no further differences between american englisgh and british englisgh as far as the other english grammar tenses are concerned?

Hello Tim,

Yes, it sounds to me as if you've understood that difference correctly.

I'd hesitate to categorically say there are no other differences, but I would say this is to a good degree the most common and important one with respect to tense usage. More specifically, I can't think of any others off the top of my head, but this is not a topic I've done extensive research or thinking on. This is why I hesitate to make any sort of categorical statement on the matter.

Hope this helps.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by sarasameer on Sat, 06/11/2021 - 18:52

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Is had lost past simple? if not, then what is it?
And can I use it when talking about something recently lost?
Thank you

Hello sarasameer,

The form 'had lost' is an example of the past perfect. We use this to describe an action in the past before another action or time in the past. In other words, it describes 'past before past'. The two past actions should also have some connection: the earlier one causes or influences the later one in some way.

You can read more about the past perfect and practise it on these pages:

> the perfect aspect:
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/english-grammar/perfect-aspect

> talking about the past
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/english-grammar/talking-about-t…

> the past perfect
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/intermediate-to-upper-i…

> the past perfect
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/english-grammar/past-perfect

Peter
The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Rikimaru on Sun, 22/08/2021 - 06:29

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Hi, I note that the Simple Past Tense can be used to talk about something that happened (once or several times) in the past. Does "something" refer to an action or event, and happened means the action/event started and ended in the past? Also, since Simple Past Tense can be used for something that happened several times in the past, does "several times in the past" mean this "something" (i.e. an action/event) started and ended several times (i.e. repeatedly) in the past?
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Submitted by Peter M. on Sun, 22/08/2021 - 07:44

In reply to by Rikimaru

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Hi Rikimaru,

The past simple is used for completed/finished actions in the past. For example:

I read this book last week. [I finished it]

I read this book four times last year. It's my favourite! [I finished it four separate times]

I went to school in the 1990s. [I don't go to school now]

 

However, there are a couple of things to remember. The first is that the action may have consequences which are ongoing even if the action is complete:

He was born in 1933. [Being born is complete but he may still be alive]

 

The second thing to remember is that a state may not be finished but the speaker may only be interested in talking about a particular part of it which is in the past, or may choose to divide the time in to discrete chunks. For example:

I was a teacher in 1993 and in 1994 and in 1995 – in fact, I'm still a teacher now! [The speaker treats 1993/4/5 as separate and distinct periods of time in the past]

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hi, So quoting your example, "I read this book four times last year. It's my favourite! [I finished it four separate times]", for instance, this means that the action of reading started and ended four times last year?
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Submitted by Peter M. on Sun, 29/08/2021 - 09:15

In reply to by Timothy555

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Hello Tim,

Yes, that's correct. The speaker would have to really like the book!

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Can I use "everyday" in past tense?? For example, can I say he went to school everyday or I met him everyday. Is that correct?or I have to change "everyday" into yesterday or any thing like that.

Hi marwah,

Yes :) You can use it with the past tense. But, it should be "every day" (two words). The single word "everyday" is an adjective (e.g., an everyday activity).

Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team

I read this book last week. [I finished it]

I started reading a book two weeks ago and I'm still reading it. I haven't finished it. Somebody asks me what did you do yesterday? Can I reply with "I read a book" I neither started nor finished it yesterday, but this is exactly what I did yesterday. I spent some time reading the book.

Another example "I read the paper on the bus" does it mean that I started and finished the paper on the bus?

Hello IlyaTretyakov,

In itself, the verb 'read' doesn't clearly indicate whether we finished the text that is read; it refers more to the activity itself.

That said, often we leave out the object when we want to focus on the activity itself. Taking your second example, if somebody asked me what I did yesterday (and I read a book, but neither started or finished it), I'd say 'I read' or perhaps 'I read for half an hour after lunch'. That doesn't explicitly indicate that I did not finish the book, but usually if I started and finished a book all in a given time period, I'd say 'I read a book' (or 'I finished a book') instead of 'I read'. But if you really want to be clear, you generally have to use other words or expressions to specify these details, unless of course the context has made it clear.

As for your third example, it kind of depends on what the question was. I can't speak for everyone, but in general I think most people wouldn't say that 'reading the paper' means one reads the whole thing -- it's different from a novel, which people generally finish (though I suspect that trend is declining).

So if someone asked me when I read the paper and it was while I was on the bus that I had read part of the paper, I could use the sentence you ask about without indicating that I read it all. Though it could also indicate that I read it all if I actually did that. Again, you have to use additional words to make it completely clear. And, just like before, often the context will make it clear, as what has been said before usually makes it clear whether we're talking about reading part of or all of a text.

I wish there were a simpler answer, but I hope that helps you make sense of things, at least.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Rikimaru on Sun, 18/07/2021 - 02:18

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Hi, I wish to know if it is true that the simple past tense can be used (in speech or writing) without any time references and time adverbs/time adverbials? For example, can I write/say "I washed the car" to mean that my washing of the car happened (i.e. started and ended in the past) without including any specific time references/adverbials like "last night" or "last week" etc? So in other words, whether it be "I washed the car" (i.e. use of simple past tense without any time reference) or "I washed the car last night/last week etc" (use of simple past tense with time references), both sentences are grammatical and make sense?

Hi Rikimaru,

Yes, that's right. The simple past shows that the action took place in the past, but stating when it took place (i.e., by adding a time reference) is optional.

I hope that helps.

Jonathan

The LearnEnglish Team

When you say "The simple past shows that the action took place in the past", do you mean the simple past shows that the action started and ended in the past (i.e. took place in the past = started and ended in the past)?

Hello Rikimaru,

Yes, that's right. The results of the action may persist or not, but the action itself was begun and completed in the past.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

In addition, simple past tense can be used regardless whether (a) the action/event happened recently (i.e. it does not matter how long ago the event is: it can be a few minutes or seconds in the past, or millions of years in the past), or (b) the action/event happened a long time ago, correct?

This means that regardless if its scenario (a) - simple past for events that happened recently, or (b) simple past for events that took place a long time ago, for both such scenarios, stating when the actions/events took place (i.e., by adding a time reference) is optional?

Hi Rikimaru,

Yes, that's right. At this point I think it's worth pointing out that we should look at the context (including the rest of the conversation) in which the past simple verb is used, as that will probably indicate which timeframe is relevant. For example, if I am telling somebody about dinosaurs, it is clear that I am talking about millions of years ago, even if I don't mention any time reference. So, yes - the time reference is optional with the past simple.

Best wishes,
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team

I was reading this and would like to chip in with my own questions. What if there is no context/background, or if the context/background is vague or not obvious, can we still use the simple past tense without any time reference/adverbials just to indicate/express that an event (action or situation) started and ended in the past?

Hello Tim,

I'm finding it hard to think of a situation in which there is absolutely no suggested time period or assumption that one will be provided. Of course, we're talking about how people understand the context of a particular interaction and how it maps onto what is known and assumed about the world, but I would say that without some understood or assumed time reference we would either provide one in the sentence or use the present perfect.

Peter
The LearnEnglish Team

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Submitted by Rafaela1 on Sat, 15/05/2021 - 12:30

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I worked hard today and became lazy after that. ;)

Submitted by frodo123 on Thu, 08/04/2021 - 14:35

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please help i (visit)lots of interesnig places