PAST

CONTINUOUS

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WHAT’S PAST CONTINUOUS?
• We use the past continuous to talk about the past. Usually used to talk
about actions that were in progress at a specific time IN THE PAST
and then were interrupted or that two ongoing actions were happening at the
same time (parallel actions).
• Past continuous is formed from the past tense of was/were with the -ing form
of the verb
– EX: The kids were doing their homework when I got home.
– In order to understand past continuous, you must know by now the present
continuous and past simple.

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 WHEN TO USE IT
• Use the past continuous to indicate that an action in the past was:
- interrupted or there was a condition that no longer exists.
– describe something that was happening continuously in the past when another action interrupted it.
– Or an habitual action in the past

• Then, the interruption comes after the were/was + verb-ing and is usually a shorter action in
the simple past. Remember this can be a real interruption or just an interruption in time.
– EX: The audience was applauding until he fell off the stage.
– I was making dinner when she arrived.
– The sun was shining everyday that summer

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 SO WE CAN USE PAST CONTINUOUS
FOR:
• Something which • Show that something continued for some time:
continued before and after another action: – My hand was hurting
– Daniel and Karina were doing their homework – Everyone was jumping
when I got home
• Something that was happening again and again:
• To begin the idea or to start a story:
– I was practicing every day, three day a week
– The other day I was waving at my friend when….
– They were always talking about that boy
– Last month as I was studying at school….
• Verbs which show change or growth:
• Something that
happened before and after a particular – Kids were growing up quickly
time – Your English was improving
– It was eight o’clock. I was writing a letter – The district was changing quickly for good
when….

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WHILE VS. WHEN
• They’re known as clauses and do have a meaning, but are often not complete sentences or
have an exact meaning without a sentence followed to close the idea.
• Even though they have similar meanings, when you talk about things in the past, "when" is
most often followed by the verb tense simple tense, whereas "while" is usually followed by past
continuous.
• "While" expresses the idea of "during that time.“
– EX: I was eating when she called
– While I was studying, she called

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REFLEXIVE VERBS

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