Past tense

Level: intermediate

Past tense

There are two tenses in English – past and present.

The past tense in English is used:

to talk about the past
to talk about hypotheses (when we imagine something)
for politeness.

There are four past tense forms in English:

Past simple:	I worked
Past continuous:	I was working
Past perfect:	I had worked
Past perfect continuous:	I had been working

We use these forms:

to talk about the past:

He worked at McDonald's. He had worked there since July.
He was working at McDonald's. He had been working there since July.

to refer to the present or future in hypotheses:

It might be dangerous. Suppose they got lost.

This use is very common in wishes:

I wish it wasn't so cold.

and in conditions with if:

He could get a new job if he really tried.
If Jack was playing, they would probably win.

For hypotheses, wishes and conditions in the past, we use the past perfect:

It was very dangerous. What if you had got lost?
I wish I hadn't spent so much money last month.
I would have helped him if he had asked.

and also to talk about the present in a few polite expressions:

Excuse me, I was wondering if this was the train for York.
I just hoped you would be able to help me.

Past tense 1: MultipleChoice_MTYzMjA=
Past tense 2: GapFillTyping_MTYzMjE=

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Hello, I had some questions on using past tense for politeness. I wanted to send invitation to another party, is it correct or natural if I write "We would send you the invitation later."? The second one is for greeting in email. I often start with "hope you are doing well", but would it be the same if I write "hoped you were doing well"? Thank you for your comment. Ethan

Hello Ethan,

This use of the past tense for politeness is typically used with specific expressions and verbs for making a request.

'I hope you are doing well' is not a request and so it is actually just fine (and polite) the way it is -- there is no need to use the past tense here. The past tense in the example above ('I just hoped you would be able to help me') is a request for someone to help you, whereas yours is wishing someone well. Does that make sense?

I'm afraid I don't understand your invitation well enough to be able to offer any advice. If you'd like me to help you with that, could you please explain the situation a bit more?

Finally, I just wanted to mention that the Cambridge Dictionary pages on Politeness and Requests have numerous examples that you might find useful.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Sir, I didn't meet them till a year ago from the time they got married. I mean it was one year ago when I last met them from the time they got married.

Hello SonuKumar,

I think the best ways to express what you are trying to say would be as follows:

The last time I met then was a year after their marriage.

You could construct a sentence with since but it would be rather unnatural and hard to follow, so I don't think we would normally use this:

I haven't met them since their first anniversary.

I haven't met them since a year after their marriage.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Sir, I didn't meat them till yesterday or a year ago from the time they got married is it a right use of from ? We don't use 'Since' until we're talking about a point in the past to the moment of speaking right ? I don't have to face it as much as you do or you have to. which is right 'you do or you have to' in the sentence above ?

Hi SonuKumar,

Both 'you do' or 'you have to' are fine in that sentence.

Be careful: 'meat' and 'meet' are very different words. I understand 'till yesterday' (and that is correct) but I'm afraid I don't really understand 'a year ago from the time they got married'. Perhaps 'a year after they got married'?

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

Hi there, I am writing an article about my recent trip. I first wrote "After three hours ride, we arrived at the resort." Then, I want to describe the lobby and its surroundings. Which one(s) of the followings is(are) proper? 1. The lobby was so beautiful. There are trees around it. And there is pond in front of it. 2. The lobby was so beautiful. There were trees around it. And there was pond in front of it. 3. The lobby is so beautiful. There are trees around it. And there is pond in front of it. Thank you for your comments. regards, MTeng06

Hello MTeng06,

I would encourage you to try to meet with your teacher to get some help with these kinds of questions, but I would choose the second one because it's in the past tense. Your first sentence uses the past and so I would recommend continuing with the past.

By the way, a lobby is an indoor space, so it's a bit strange to mention trees and a pond near it. I would recommend using the word 'entrance' or something similar instead.

All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team

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Past tense

Past tense

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