TENSES MADE EASY

Past Continuous

We use The Past Continuous to talk about past actions in progress. The actions can also be interrupted by something (I was eating my breakfast when the telephone rang).

USE:

1.     Actions in progress

2.     Interrupted actions in progress

3.     Irritation

4.     Timid/ polite question (read more below)

Past Continuous Tense
To Talk About actions happening at a certain point in the past, background event, actions happening simultaneously and interrupted actions.
POSITIVE	SUBJECT	TO BE	VERB + ING	COMPLEMENT
	I You/We/They He/She/It	Was Were was	Working Working Working	At 5 yesterday At 5 yesterday At 5 yesterday
NEGATIVE	SUBJECT	AUX. + NOT	VERB + ING	COMPLEMENT
	I You/We/They He/She/It	was not were  not was not	Working Working Working	At 5 yesterday At 5 yesterday At 5 yesterday
QUESTION	AUX.	SUBJECT	VERB + ING	COMPLEMENT
	Was Were was	I You/We/They He/She/It	Working Working Working	At 5 yesterday? At 5 yesterday? At 5 yesterday?

I was wondering if you could carry my bag.

I was wondering if…

I was thinking you might…

Although these sentences have The Past Continuous form, they apply to the present moment. Their meaning is similar to the “could you” sentences but they are more polite.

In Positive Sentences

At 3 p.m., I was having lunch (Actions in progress) (the lunch started earlier than 3 p.m.)

Yesterday at this time Steven seagal was riding a horse

John was smoking a cigarette when he saw a spider                        (Interrupted actions in progress)

In Questions

Was she going to the theater when it started raining?

In Negative Sentences

He asked me why I wasn't having dinner at the hotel.

Remember!

You can also use The Past Continuous to show your irritation over something or somebody in the past. E.g. she was always asking me stupid questions.

Spoken Practice

Answer the following questions in spoken English

1.       Make 10 combined sentences of simple past and past continuous for example

I was sleeping when you called me; she was studying when I met her etc.