Learning the simple past tense

with little bean

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@ketnipz

Remember! We use the past tense to talk about events that started
and finished in the past.

The past tense has three forms: affirmative, negative and

interrogative.

1. Affirmative

Structure: Subject + verb in the simple past tense (regular/irregular)

There are two possibilities!

1. Regular verbs: base form + -ed/-d.

Example: Little bean visited his
grandmother last week.
2. Irregular verbs: verbs from the 2nd
column
Example: Little bean and his
grandma ate at home.

Pronunciation: there are three different ways to pronounce the final -

ed of regular verbs in past simple. It depends on the final sound (not
letter) of the verb in the base form.

1. /id/: for verbs ending in /t/ and /d/.

Examples: decide – decided; exist – existed.

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 2. /d/: after voiced sounds (/b/, /g/, /v/, /z/, /ʓ/, /dʓ/, /m/, /n/,
/ŋ/, /l/, /đ/, /r/) and vowels.

Examples: save – saved; stay – stayed; play – played; kill

– killed; lie – lied; try – tried.

3. /t/: After unvoiced sounds (/p/, /f/, /s/, /k/, /ʃ/, and /ʃt/). In
verbs from this group, the /e/ is never pronounced.

Examples: stop – stopped; clap – clapped; help – helped;

work – worked.

2. Negative and Interrogative

The negative and interrogative forms of the simple past tense are very
easy – there is only one possibility!

For the negative and interrogative forms of the simple past tense OF
ALL VERBS (regular and irregular) we use the auxiliary do in its simple
past form (2nd column – did). The following verb after did always goes
in infinitive. Compare to play (a regular verb) and to swim (an irregular
verb):

• Regular: I played
Affirmative
• Irregular: I swam
• Regular: I didn't
Negative play
• I didn't swim
• Did I play?
Interrogative
• Did I swim?

There are only two exceptions: the verb to be and some modal verbs
(can). See below the negative and interrogative forms of the verbs to
be and can.

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 To be
Negative Interrogative Contractions (both
negative and
interrogative)
I was not Was I?
You were not Were you?
He/she/it was not Was he/she/it? wasn't
We/you/they were not Were we/you/they? weren't

Can
Negative Interrogative Contractions (both
negative and
interrogative)
I could not Could I?
You could not Could you?
He/she/it could not Could he/she/it?
We/you/they could not Could we/you/they? couldn't

What is the main different between the negative and the interrogative
form? It is the structure. Compare:

1. Structure of the negative form: subject + did not + base form:

Example: Little bean did not study Italian; he studied French.

Warning! Never forget the auxiliary did. It is a common

mistake to say: *He not studied. The correct form is:
He did not study.

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2. Structure of the interrogative form:
1. Yes/No questions: Did (not) + subject + base form (+
complement):

Example: Did little bean study Italian? No, he studied French.

2. Wh- questions: Wh- word + did (not) + subject + base form:

Example: What did little bean study? He studied French.