Grammar summary | Unit 4

Past simple and past continuous We use the past continuous to talk about an activity or event
in progress in the past at the same time as the main event
Past simple: form and use (in the past simple).
We were sitting at our desks doing some work. Suddenly
For regular verbs, we form the past simple with infinitive + -ed: we heard a loud crash.
play played, want wanted, walk walked
I worked in Italy in 2014. We often use the past continuous with the past simple to
He started his own company two years ago. talk about an activity in progress when another action took
place. We can join the actions with while or when.
Notice the spelling rules for other regular verbs: She heard the news while she was driving to work.
●● for verbs ending in -e, we add -d: organize organized My colleagues were waiting for me when I arrived at the café.
●● for verbs ending in -y, we change the -y to an -i and add
-ed: study studied, try tried We do not usually use the past continuous with stative
verbs: have, own, know, like, want.
●● for verbs ending in vowel + consonant (not -w,-x or -y), we
I went to Manchester to study medicine. At that time I
double the consonant and add -ed: stop stopped
wanted to be a doctor.

Some verbs have an irregular affirmative form in the past simple:

▶ Exercise 2
be was/were, do did, come came,
go went, know knew, write wrote
Past perfect
We use the past simple:
Form and use
●● to talk about completed actions and events in the past. We
often use a time phrase (yesterday, last month, five years ago). We form the past perfect with had (’d) + the past participle.
I met James three years ago. He had seen the aeroplane crash.
I learned German at school. They hadn’t visited London before.
●● to describe actions and events that happened one after Had she heard about the restructuring before she applied
another (often in a story or narrative). for the job?
She listened carefully to the arguments and she thought
We use the past perfect to talk about an event or action that
for a few moments. Then she said, ‘Yes, I agree.’
happened before another event in the past. We often use the
●● for a single, repeated action in the past. past perfect simple and the past simple together.
He walked to work every day. main event main event
➔

He went to the interview, but he didn’t get the job

Negatives and questions
because he hadn’t prepared for it.
➔

To form negative sentences and questions in the past earlier event

simple, we use did/didn’t + the main verb. We often use the following time expressions with the past
Did you see Pete yesterday? perfect to emphasize that this action happened earlier:
I didn’t know that before. already, before, earlier, just, previously, recently
Did she marry him? No, she didn’t.
▶ Exercise 3
The past simple of be is I/he/she/it was and we/you/they
were. The negative forms are wasn’t and weren’t. We invert Comparison of narrative tenses
the subject and verb when we ask questions.
I was a teacher for ten years. When we tell a story:
The students weren’t at school last week – it was a holiday. ●● we use the past continuous to describe the scene or
Were you at the concert last weekend? background to the main event
●● we use the past simple to describe the main events one after
▶ Exercise 1 another

Past continuous: form and use ●● we use the past perfect to refer to an earlier time before the
main event
We form the past continuous with the past simple of the I was walking in the park. The sun was shining. I heard
verb be (was/were) plus the -ing form of the verb. a scream and ran to the lake. I saw a boy. He had fallen
She was waiting for the train to arrive. into the water.
We were playing tennis.
▶ Exercises 4–6

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 EXERCISES 4 Danny and Sam were invited to dinner at 8 p.m. Say
approximately what time they arrived in each case. Give
1 Complete the conversation using the past simple form of
reasons for your answers.
the verbs.
1 When Danny and Sam arrived, we sat down and ate
A: 1
(you / see) the documentary
dinner.
about consumerism on the TV last night?
B: No 2 (I / not).
3
(be / it) good? 2 When Danny and Sam arrived, we were eating dinner.
A: Yes, it was very good. It 4
(explain) why we throw things away and buy new
3 When Danny and Sam arrived, we had already eaten
things. Fifty years ago people 5
dinner.
(make) things to last. But many companies
6
(change) that in the 1980s.
Also in the programme, they 7 5 Complete the story using the past simple, past
(interview) people waiting in a queue to buy the latest continuous and past perfect form of the verbs.
iPhone. The interviewer 8 (ask)
one man if the new phone 9 (be) A few years ago my wife and I 1 went (go)
very different. The man 10 (reply) to Marrakech in Morocco for a short holiday. We
that he 11 (not / think) so, but he
2
(want) to see the city and to
just 12 (want) to have the latest spend some time relaxing in the warm weather. We
phone!
3
(know) that Marrakech was famous
for its markets, but we 4 (not / want)
2 Choose the correct option (past simple or past to do any shopping. We 5 (do) lots of
continuous) to complete the sentences. sightseeing and we 6 (have) a great
1 I was sitting / sat in the park at lunchtime when a bird time.
was flying / flew down and was stealing / stole my On our last day we 7 (walk) through
sandwich. a market when my wife 8 (see)
2 She had / was having a brilliant idea while she was some shoes that she really 9 (like).
walking / walked to work this morning. Although we 10 (decide) not to do any
3 Jaime was leaving / left the meeting while they were still shopping that day, she 11 (go) into the
discussing / still discussed the project. shop to buy them. I 12 (wait) outside.
4 He was leaving / left before the meeting was ending / Twenty minutes later, she 13 (come)
ended. out of the shop. The shopkeeper 14
5 They weren’t getting / didn’t get any sleep because the (sell) her three pairs of shoes, a handbag and a set of
neighbours were playing / played loud music all night. six plates!
6 Sorry, I wasn’t knowing / didn’t know that you were
waiting / waited for me. 6 Correct the mistake in each sentence.
7 We were driving / drove to Vancouver and then we were 1 Where were you training to become a teacher?
taking / took a ferry to Vancouver Island.
8 Did you stay / Were you staying in bed while you had / 2 He broke his leg while he played football.
were having a cold?

3 Look at the underlined verbs. Are the uses of the past 3 I was thinking it was the best thing to do.
perfect correct? If not, rewrite the verb using the correct
tense. 4 Sorry, I had forgotten to buy some milk.

1 When I arrived at the post office it had closed. So I 5 When I got to the station, the train already left.
couldn’t buy any stamps.
2 She got up and had eaten breakfast. Then she cleaned 6 Why did you parked the car so far from your house?
her bedroom.
3 The room was cold because someone had left the
window open.
4 They went to Rome because they had never visited Italy
before.
5 I sent you a message yesterday. Had you got it?
6 When my phone rang, I hadn’t answered it.

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