M. Swan: Practical English Usage; M. Hewings: Advanced Grammar in Use; R.

Murphy: English Grammar in Use

Simple past, Past progressive (continuous); Used to do – handout

Simple past

Form
Statement: I worked in Prague.
Question: Did you work in Prague? – Yes, I did. / No, I didn’t.
Negative: I didn’t work in Prague.

!!!Spelling rules!!!
!!! Irregular verbs!!!

Use

 short, quickly finished actions and happenings, longer situations, repeated events
o Peter broke a window last night.
o I spent all my childhood in Scotland.
o Regularly every summer, Janet fell in love.
 stories and descriptions in the past
o One day the Princess decided that she didn’t like staying at home all day, so she told
her father that she wanted to get a job...
 often used with words referring to finished times (yesterday, last week, last year, a week
ago, etc.)
o I saw John yesterday morning. He told me...
 non-progressive verbs!!!

Past progressive (continuous)

Form

Statement: I was watching TV at 8 o’clock.

Question: Were you watching TV at 8 o’clock? – Yes, I was. / No, I wasn’t.
Negative: I wasn’t watching TV at 8 o’clock.

Use

 something was in progress (going on) around a particular past time

o When I got up this morning, the sun was shining, the birds were singing...
o I was watching TV at 8 o’clock.
 background events
o As I was walking down the road, I saw Bill.
o The phone rang while I was having dinner.
 two temporary events happening at the same time
o He was watching TV while I was making dinner.

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M. Swan: Practical English Usage; M. Hewings: Advanced Grammar in Use; R. Murphy: English Grammar in Use

 from – to
o She was playing tennis from 2 to 4 o’clock yesterday.
 arrangements in the past
o Of course he was nervous; he was flying to the moon the next morning.
 being polite
o I was wondering if you could...

Used to

Form

Statement: I used to like opera.

Question: Did you use to like opera? – Yes, I did. / No, I didn’t.
Negative: I didn’t use to like opera.

!!! Use + infinitive!!!

Use

 when we talk about habits and states in the past which are now finished
o I used to smoke.
o That house used to be a cinema.
 used to has no present form in this meaning and is used only for the past. To talk about
present habits and states, we usually use the present simple tense.