SIMPLE PAST TENSE

1. Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action or situation started
and finished at a specific time in the past. We use the simple past tense to talk
about things that are now finished.

Past.........X..................................Now...................................................Future
He was a writer

Examples:

Edgar Allan was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic.
Edgar Allan Poe lived in the nineteenth century.
He wrote poetry.

2. You can use the simple past tense with time expressions that refer to the
past (last night, last Monday, last week, last month, last year, last summer, by
1982, in the eighteenth century, three years ago, two days ago)

Examples:

By 1845, he was famous

He died more than one hundred years ago.
 SIMPLE PAST TENSE

3. The simple past tense of regular verbs is formed by adding (d ) or (ed).

Examples:

Simple form Simple Past

Join joined
Live lived
Work Worked
Play Played

There are often spelling changes when you add –ed to the verb.

Examples:

Hop Hopped
Carry Carried
Prefer Preferred
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Many common verbs are irregular. Their past tense is not formed by adding d or
ed.

Examples

Be was / were
Have had
Get got
Go went
Think thought
Drink drank
Buy bought
Drive drove
Take took
Eat ate
Give gave
Feel felt
Know knew
Make made
Do did
Wake woke
Say Said
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SPELLING RULES FOR THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE OF REGULAR VERBS
(Taken form Grammar Express for Self Study and Clasroom Use by Marjorie Fuchs and Margaret Bonner, Longman)

1. If the verbs ends in a consonant, add (ed).

Return returned
Help helped

2. If the verb ends in (e), add (d)

Live lived
Create Created
Die Died

3. In one-syllable words, if the verb ends in a consonant vowel- consonant

combinantion (CVC) double the final consonant and add (ed).
CVC Hop Hopped
Rub Rubbed

However, do not double one-syllable words ending in (w, x or y)

Bow Bowed
Mix Mixed
Play Played
 SIMPLE PAST TENSE

SPELLING RULES FOR THE SIMPLE PAST TENSE OF REGULAR VERBS

(Taken form Grammar Express for Self Study and Clasroom Use by Marjorie Fuchs and Margaret Bonner, Longman)

4. In words of two or more syllables that end in a consonant-vowel-consonat

combinantion, double the last consonant only if the last syllable is stressed.

Prefer preferred (The last syllable is stressed, so you double the r )

Visit visited (The last syllable isn’t stressed, so yo don’t double the
t)

5. If the verb ends in a consonant + y, change the y to i and add (ed)

Worry worried
Carry carried

6. If the verb ends in a vowel + y, add (ed). (Don’t change the y to i )

Play played
Annoy annoyed

Exceptions: Irregular verbs

pay – paid lay – laid say - said
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CONJUGATION OF REGULAR VERBS :

Simple past of the Verb Work

Affirmative form Negative Form Yes/ no questions Wh questions

I worked I didn’t work Did I work? Where did you work?

you worked You didn’t work Did you work? When did you work?
He worked He didn’t work Did he work? Who did you work with?
She worked She didn’t work Did she work? Why did you work?
It worked It didn’t work Did it work? How did you work?
We worked We didn’t work Did we work? What did you work?
You worked You didn’t work Did you work?
They worked They didn’t work Did they work?

Examples:

Yesterday, I worked with my boss until 8 pm. Affirmative

Yesterday, I didn’t work with my boss. Negative
Did you work with your boss yesterday? Y/N question
Who did your work with yesterday? Wh question
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CONJUGATION OF IRREGULAR VERBS :

Simple past of verb Be

Affirmative form Negative Form Yes/ no questions Wh questions

I was I wasn’t Was I? How was I today?

You were you weren’t Were you? Where were you?
He was he wasn’t Was he? When was he here?
She was she wasn’t Was she? Why was she happy?
It was it wasn’t Was it? What was it?
We were we weren’t Were we? Who were we with?
You were you weren’t Were you?
They were They weren’t Were they?

Examples:

Last night, I was in a very cool party. Affirmative

We weren’t in London two years ago. Negative
Was that you mother? Y/N question
When were your born? Wh question
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CONJUGATION OF IRREGULAR VERBS :

Simple past of Verb Go

Affirmative form Negative Form Yes/ no questions Wh questions

I went I didn’t go Did I go? Where did you go?

You went you didn’t go Did you go? Who did you go with?
He went he didn’t go Did he go? Why did he go?
She went she didn’t go Did she go? How did she go?
It went it didn’t go Did it go? When did we go?
We went we didn’t go Did we go?
You went you didn’t go Did you go?
They went they didn’t go Did they go?

Examples:

Last year I went to Italy. Affirmative

We didn’t go to the university last fall. Negative
Did you go to the library yesterday evening? Y/N question
Where did they go? Wh question
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MORE GRAMMAR REFERENCES

1. http://esl.about.com/library/beginner/blwas.htm
2. http://www.ompersonal.com.ar/omverbs/verbtobe-past.htm
3. http://www.theyellowpencil.com/gramatobepast.html
4. http://www.englishpage.com/verbpage/simplepast.html
5. http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/verb-tenses_past.htm
6. http://www.aprenderinglesfacil.es/2008/04/pasado-simple-simple-past-
tense.html
7. http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/grammar/simple_past_use.htm
 SIMPLE PAST TENSE

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

1. Grammar Express :
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=sites&srcid=ZGVmYXVsdGRvbWFpbn
xkZXBhcnRhbWVudG9sZW5ndWFzdWNlbnRyYWx8Z3g6MWI2ZWFmMDliMTJk
ZDY5NQ

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