The Past Tense

PAST TENSE
Past tense expresses the actions that happened in the past. It has also four types.

5. Simple Past Tense

Structure:
Subject + Verb (v2) or irregular verb:

Example:
He completed the assignment.
I read the newspaper.
Simple past tense is used to express the actions that happened in the past or happened one
after the other. For example, The baby crawled.

Signal words
Last night
Yesterday
Last Monday
In 1998
An hour ago
Structure / Formula
Subject + V2 + Object

I solved the sum

Subject Simple Past (V2) Object
Positive Sentences
See the structure to make affirmative/positive sentences.

Subject + Past(V2) + Object

Examples of positive sentences

1 Julia made a sponge cake.
2 He went to the hill station.

Negative Sentences
We use ‘not’ after auxiliary verb to make the sentence negative.

Subject + did + not + Base form (V1) + object.

Examples of negative sentences.

1 Julia did not make a sponge cake.

2 He did not go to the hill station.
Interrogative Sentences
To make the question, auxiliary verb come at the start of the sentence and question mark at the
end.

Did + subject + base form (V1) + object + ?

Examples of question sentences.

1 Did Julia make a sponge cake?

2 Did he go to the hill station?
Type2
Q.word+did+sub.+ V¹+ obj.+etc?
Example:
1 Why did Jyoti study English?
2 Why did Jyoti go to school?

Usage
USAGE EXAMPLES
Action that happened at definite time.
- She went to the park an hour ago.
Actions that happened one after the other.
- He ordered pizza. He received the pizza at home. He ate it.
The actions or states that finished in past.
- His mother used to wash his clothes.

Example Sentences
1. He drew the old man out of the ditch.
2. She used to wash clothes daily.
3. He wrote an interesting story.
4. The child completed his homework.
5. Did he live in this house?
6. His mother would wash clothes.
7. Did he write a letter?
8. We paid tribute to our national poet.
9. The boys recited the national anthem.
10. She did not sleep.

Simple past tense formula & sentences

Exercise
1 He ______ not ______ a letter. (not write)
2 ______ we _____ the sum? (solve)
3 We _____ tribute to our national poet. (pay)
4 The boys _____ the national anthem. (recite)
5 They _____ my invitation. (accept)
6 _____ poor children _____ toys? (buy)
7 _____ he _____ the river? (swim)
8 He _____ badminton yesterday. (play)
9 The child’s mouth _____ on seeing the sweets. (water)
10 She ______ every challenge bravely. (face)

Answers

1 He did not write a letter.

2 Did we solve the sum?
3 We paid tribute to our national poet.
4 The boys recited the national anthem.
5 They accepted my invitation.
6 Did poor children buy toys?
7 Did he swim the river?
8 He played badminton yesterday.
9 The child’s mouth watered on seeing the sweets.
10 She faced every challenge bravely.

Simple Past Tense Exercises: It is a practice exercise for you. You need to choose one correct
option from the given multiple options.

Keep in mind the formula of simple past tense and solve the exercise.

Subject + V2 + object

Let’s start!

1 How much did you _______ me?

missed
miss
missing
2 He did not _______ me.
find
found
had found
3 The lion _______ after the zebra.
run
ran
running
4 My bike _______ out of order in the way.
go
gone
went
5 My grandma _______ tell a story.
used to
use to
using to
6 She _______ me in train.
meet
had met
met
7 I _______ your e-mail yesterday.
received
receive
receiving
8 When did you _______ Glasgow?
reached
reach
has reached
9 I _______ to talk to her.
want
wanting
wanted
10 She _______ her promise.
did fulfill
has fulfilled
fulfill
11 The firm _______ me certificate on a good performance.
award
has awarded
awarded
12 It _______ yesterday morning.
drizzle
drizzled
was drizzling
13 The museum _______ ancient and historical items.
bought
buy
has bought
14 She _______ English grammar rules.
study
studied
has studied
15 They _______ football yesterday.
play
has played
played
Answers
1 How much did you miss me?
2 He did not find me.
3 The lion ran after the zebra.
4 My bike went out of order in the way.
5 My grandma used to tell a story.
6 She met me in train.
7 I received your e-mail yesterday.
8 When did you reach Glasgow?
9 I wanted to talk to her.
10She did fulfill her promise.
11 The firm awarded me certificate on a good performance.
12 It drizzled yesterday morning.
13 The museum bought ancient and historical items.
14 She studied English grammar rules.
15 They played football yesterday.

6. Past Continuous Tense

Past continuous tense expresses the actions or task that were ongoing in the past. We cannot
determine when the action started or finished. For example, When I was walking yesterday, it
started raining.

Signal Words
when
as long as
while
yesterday.
Structure / Formula
Subject + was/were + Present participle (-ing) form

He was drawing a sketch.

Subject Auxiliary verb Present Participle(ing) object
Positive Sentences
To make the positive sentences, see the following formula.

Subject + was/were + Present participle (-ing) form

Examples of positive sentences

Structure:
Subject + was/were + Verb(+ing)

Example:
He was reading the book.
I was going to the park for a morning walk.
positive sentences
He was traveling to Venice.
She was eating a burger.

Negative Sentences
We add ‘not’ after auxiliary verb to make the sentence negative.

Subject + was/were + not + Present participle (-ing) form

Examples of negative sentences.

He was not traveling to Venice.

She was not eating a burger.

Interrogative Sentences
To make the question, auxiliary verb come at the start of the sentence and question mark at the
end.

Was/were + Subject + Present participle (-ing) form + ?

Examples of question sentences.

Was he traveling to Venice?

Was she eating a burger?
Usage
Usage Example
To express actions that were ongoing in past.
- He was playing tennis yesterday.
Two or more ongoing past actions at the same time.
- He was watching movie while he was was eating chips.
Time expression
- He was driving car at 05:00 pm yesterday.
Example Sentences
1. He was drawing the old man out of the ditch.
2. He was writing an interesting story.
3. Was he living in this house?
4. I was not reciting the national anthem.
5. John was traveling to Venice.
6. She was driving the car.
7. They were eating mangoes.
8. The naughty boy was not teasing the old man.
9. Was the hero fighting with cannibals?
10. They were not signing the agreement.
Past continuous tense
Passive Voice
Usually, passive voice of past continuous tense is made when the subject is not known. For
example,

Mangoes were being eaten. (affirmative)

Mangoes were not being eaten. (negative)
Were mangoes being eaten? (question)
Structure of passive voice sentences,

Object + was/were + being + Verb(v3)

7. Past Perfect Tense

Past perfect tense indicates the finished or completed actions of the past. For example, I had
taken two doses of medicine before the fever vanished.

Signal Words
before yesterday
already
when
until that day
Structure / Formula
Subject + had + Past participle (v3)

He had traveled last year.

He/she/it /I/we/they had Past participle(V3)

Positive Sentences
To make the positive sentences, we use this structure,

Subject + had + Past participle (V3)+obj.+etc.

Structure:
Subject + had + Verb (v3)

Example:
I had finished my homework.
He had completed his task.
The players had lost heart before the match finished.
Chris had completed the assignment before he went to school.

Negative Sentences
We add ‘not’ after auxiliary verb to make the sentence negative.
Subject + had + not + Past participle (V3)+obj.+etc.

Examples of negative sentences.

The players had not lost heart before the match finished.
Chris had not completed the assignment before he went to school.

Interrogative Sentences
To make the question, ‘had’ come at the start of the sentence and question mark at the end.

Had + subject + Past participle (V3) + obj.+etc?

Examples of interrogative sentences.

Had the players lost heart before the match finished?

Had Chris completed the assignment before he went to school?

Example Sentences
1. He had drawn the sketch of a map.
2. The match had finished when I reached the stadium.
3. Had she lived in this house?
4. I had not planted the flowers.
5. John had traveled to Venice until last month.
6. They had eaten mangoes.
7. The hero had not fought with cannibals.
8. He had read his favorite book before yesterday.
9. The players had lost heart before the match finished.
10. I had drafted my plan before I started work.

Exercise
The mechanic ________ my bike before I reached the workshop. (fix)
She _______ the marathon. (win)
He _______ all his money. (spend)
The queen _______ the golden crown. (wearr)
The old sailor _______ many oars. (utilize)
The student _______ many hours before the exam started. (study)
The farmer _______ wheat last year. (grow)
We _________ her yesterday. (visit)
The patient ________ consciousness before the doctor’s arrival. (regain)
I ________ my work before you came. (finish)
Answers

The mechanic had fixed my bike before I reached the workshop.

She had won the marathon.
He had spent all his money.
The Queen had worn the golden crown.
The old sailor had utilized many oars.
The student had studied many hours before the exam started.
The farmer had grown wheat last year.
We had visited her yesterday. (visit)
The patient had regained consciousness before the doctor’s arrival.
I had finished my work before you came.

Past Perfect Tense Exercises: It is a practice exercise for you. You need to choose one correct
option from the given multiple options.

Recall the past perfect tense formula and solve the exercise.

Subject + had + past participle + object

Let’s start!

I _________ French before I moved to France.

has studied
have studied
had studied
The guests _________ before the sunset.
had gone
has gone
will go
The shopkeeper _________ the shop before I reached there.
has closed
had closed
closed
The patient _________ medicine before the doctor arrived.
has taken
had taken
will have taken
I _________ such a beautiful horse before.
had not seen
have not seen
has not seen
The leopard _________ up the tree before the lion arrived.
had climbed
has climbed
have climbed
Shami _________ to the park.
had gone
has gone
will have gone
It _________ in my village.
has not rained
had not rained
will not rain
England _________ the cricket world cup.
had won
has won
will have won
She _________ the meal before I came.
has cooked
will have cooked
had cooked
He _________ the lamp.
had lighted
has lighted
lighted
It _________ drizzling before I reached home.
has started
had started
started
Kiran _________ her birthday.
had celebrated
has celebrated
celebrated
The employees _________ the target before the boss came.
had achieved
have achieved
has achieved
The poet had already _________ a poem.
written
has written
had written
Answers
I had studied French before I moved to France.
The guests had gone before the sunset.
The shopkeeper had closed the shop before I reached there.
The patient had taken medicine before the doctor arrived.
I had not seen such a beautiful horse before.
The leopard had climbed up the tree before the lion arrived.
Shami had gone to the park.
It had not rained in my village.
England had won the cricket world cup.
She had cooked the meal before I came.
He had lighted the lamp.
It had started drizzling before I reached home.
Kiran had celebrated her birthday.
The employees had achieved the target before the boss came.
The poet had already written a poem.

8. Past Perfect Continuous Tense

Past Perfect Continuous Tense is used to express the action that started in the past and
continued in the past for some time. It is also called Past Perfect Progressive Tense.

Signal Words
for two hours,
for ________
All day
since morning,
since ______

Structure / Formula
Subject + had + been + Base form(+ing) + object + time reference

I had been travelling.

Subject Auxiliary verb Auxiliary verb Base form of
verb+ing

Positive Sentences
To make the positive sentences, we use this structure,

Subject + had + been + Base form(+ing) + object + time reference

Structure:
Subject + had + been + Verb(+ing)
Example:
He had been completing his assignment for the last two hours.
I had been playing football since morning.
He had been playing football for two hours.
The child had been studying since morning.
She had been drafting the plan for a meeting for two hours.
I had been playing my favorite game.
They had been working in this office since last year.

Negative Sentences
To make the sentence negative, we add ‘not’ after the auxiliary verb.
Subject + had + not + been + Base form(+ing) + object + TR

Examples of negative sentences.

The mechanic had not been fixing my bike since morning.

He had not been reading his favorite book.
She had not been planting for three hours.
I had not been traveling.

Interrogative Sentences
Auxiliary verb ‘had’ come at the start of the sentence and question mark at the end.

Had + subject+ been + Base form(+ing) + object + T.R. +?

Examples of question sentences.

Had he been studying book since morning?

Had she been planting for two hours?
Had they been traveling for two days?
Had he been smoking since 2011?
Type2
Structure:
Q.word+had+sub. + been+(V¹+ing)+obj. +etc?
Example:
Why had she been playing for two hours?
Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Usage
Usage Example
Emphasis on duration of action or task that finished in past.
- I had been learning French for two years before I went to college.
Time expressions (since, for, lately, how long).
- He had been drafting a plan for two days before the meeting.
Exercises
He (not, bath) in the rain since morning.
He (write) an interesting essay.
I (take) the dose of medicine for two days.
The farmer (plant) since morning.
I (learn) English.
The child (week) bitterly for one hour.
Rita (drive) the black car for five years.
The children (watch) the TV all day long.
John (smoke) for five years.
The mechanic (fix) my bike since morning.
I (plan) my holidays for one week.
He (obey) the orders of his boss.
Answers
He had not been bathing in the rain since morning.
He had been writing an interesting essay.
I had been taking the dose of medicine for two days.
The farmer had been planting since morning.
I had been learning English.
The child had been weeping bitterly for one hour.
Rita had been driving the black car for five years.
The children had been watching the TV all day long.
John had been smoking for five years.
The mechanic had been fixing my bike since morning.
I had been planning my holidays for one week.
He had been obeying the orders of his boss.