Thursday, January 11th, 2024

SIMPLE PAST TENSE

The simple past tense is one of the most useful tenses in English but
before we study it, we need to learn the difference between regular and
irregular verbs:

REGULAR VERBS IRREGULAR VERBS

Regular verbs are verbs that Irregular verbs are verbs that
form their past tense by change in writing when used in
adding "-ed" to the base form the past tense.
of the verb.
 GO = WENT
 PLAY = PLAYED  EAT = ATE
 WASH = WASHED

SIMPLE PAST USES

We use the simple past tense to talk about:

Completed actions in the past.

 Mary played soccer yesterday.

 Karina made dinner last night.

Habits in the past.

 Charles visited her grandmother when he was young.

 Camila played in the park when she was little.

To describe a series of completed actions in past.

 She finished her homework, called her friend, and went to bed.
 I woke up, brushed my teeth, and had breakfast.
SIMPLE PAST RULES
1. For most verbs, simply add 5. Verbs ending in "E" only add a "D" to
"-ed" form the simple past tense:

2. Walk → Walked 6. Love → Loved

3. Play → Played 7. Dance → Danced
4. Jump → Jumped

8. Verbs ending in CVC with the stress on the 11. Verbs ending in "Y" after a consonant
last syllable, double the final consonant change the "Y" to "I" and add "-ED":
before adding "-ed":
12. Carry → Carried
9. Stop → Stopped 13. Study → Studied
10. Plan → Planned

14. Verbs ending in "Y" after a vowel simply 17. Verbs ending in "l" after a vowel, such
add "-ED": as "travel" or "cancel," simply add "-
ed":
15. Play → Played
16. Enjoy → Enjoyed  Travel → Traveled (or Travelled in
British English)
 Cancel → Canceled (or Cancelled in
British English)

Practice

1. Cook _________ 9. Plan __________

2. Play __________ 10.Carry __________
3. Dance _________ 11.Study ___________
4. Walk __________ 12.Try ____________
5. Jump ___________ 13.Enjoy __________
6. Love ___________ 14.Stay ____________
7. Smile __________ 15.Travel ___________
8. Stop ___________ 16.Cancel ___________
17.Signal ____________
 SIMPLE PAST PRONUNCIATION

When "ed" is added to the end of a regular verb, it can make three different
sounds: /t/, /d/, or /id/.

1. If the verb ends in a voiceless sound (like /p/, /k/, /f/, /s/, /ʃ/, /tʃ/), then the
"ed" ending sounds like /t/.
 Hop = hopped
 Kick = kicked
 Laugh = laughed /t/
 Miss = missed
 Wash = washed
 Watch = watched

2. If the base form of the verb ends in a voiced sound (like /b/, /g/, /v/, /z/,
/dʒ/, /ð/), then the "ed" ending sounds like /d/.
 Rob = robbed
 Hug = hugged
 Arrive = arrived /d/
 Buzz = buzzed
 Judge = judged
 Breathe = breathed

3. If the base form of the verb ends in a "t" or "d" sound, then the "ed"
ending sounds like /id/.
 Wait = waited
 Need = needed
 End = ended /id/
 Decide = decided
 Admit = admitted
 Pretend = pretended
SIMPLE PAST STRUCTURE
 Positive
Subject + verb in past + complement.

 She played tennis

 He walked to the store.
 The cat chased the mouse.
_____________________________________________ (Paint)
_____________________________________________ (Erase)
_____________________________________________ (Climb)

Negative
Subject + did not / didn’t + base form of the verb + complement.

 They didn't go to the party.

 They didn't play soccer yesterday.
 She didn't study for the test.
_____________________________________________ (Paint)
_____________________________________________ (Erase)
_____________________________________________ (Climb)

Interrogative
Did + subject + base form of the verb + object/complement?

 Did you finish your homework?

 Did you see the movie last night?
 Did they finish their work on time?
_____________________________________________ (Paint)
_____________________________________________ (Erase)
_____________________________________________ (Climb)