Past simple tense
FORM
1- Form the Simple Past:- with regular verbs: infinitive + -ed
- with irregular verbs: 2nd column of the table of the irregular verbs
Examples:
- You called Debbie.
- Did you call Debbie?
- You did not call Debbie.
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infinitive
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irregular past
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be
begin break bring buy build choose come cost cut do draw drive eat feel find get give go have hear hold keep know leave lead let lie lose make mean meet pay put run say sell send set sit speak spend stand take teach tell think understand wear win write |
was/were
began broke brought bought built chose came cost cut did drew drove ate felt found got gave went had heard held kept knew left led let lay lost made meant met paid put ran said sold sent set sat spoke spent stood took taught told thought understood wore won wrote |
Exceptions in Spelling when Adding ‘ed’
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Exceptions in
spelling when adding ed
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Example
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after a final e only add d
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love – loved
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final consonant after a short, stressed vowel
or l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled |
admit – admitted
travel – travelled |
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final y after a consonant becomes i
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hurry – hurried
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3-Affirmative sentences:
Use the same form of the verb every time regardless the subject.|
regular verbs
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irregular verbs
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I played football.
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I went to the supermarket.
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4-Negative sentences:
Use the auxiliary did (Simple Past of do) every time regardless the subject.|
regular verbs
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irregular verbs
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I did not play football.
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I did not go to the supermarket.
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regular verbs
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irregular verbs
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I didn't play football.
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I didn't go to the supermarket.
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5-Questions:
Use the auxiliary did (Simple Past of do) every time regardless the subject.|
regular verbs
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irregular verbs
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Did you play football?
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Did I go to the supermarket?
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Signal words
yesterday, last week, a month ago, in 2002
6-uses
1- Completed Action in the Past
Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.Examples:
- I saw a movie yesterday.
- I didn't see a play yesterday.
- Last year, I traveled to Japan.
- Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.
- Did you have dinner last night?
- She washed her car.
- He didn't wash his car.
2- A Series of Completed Actions
We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.Examples:
- I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.
- He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
- Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs?
3- Duration in Past
The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.Examples:
- I lived in Brazil for two years.
- Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
- They sat at the beach all day.
- They did not stay at the party the entire time.
- We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.
- A: How long did
you wait for them?
B: We waited for one hour.
4- Habits in the Past
The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used to." To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.Examples:
- I studied French when I was a child.
- He played the violin.
- He didn't play the piano.
- Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid?
- She worked at the movie theater after school.
- They never went to school, they always skipped class.
5- Past Facts or Generalizations
The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts or generalizations which are no longer true. As in USE 4 above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the expression "used to."Examples:
- She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing.
- He didn't like tomatoes before.
- Did you live in Texas when you were a kid?
- People paid much more to make cell phone calls in the past.
IMPORTANT When-Clauses Happen First
Clauses are groups of words which have meaning but are often not complete sentences. Some clauses begin with the word "when" such as "when I dropped my pen..." or "when class began..." These clauses are called when-clauses, and they are very important. The examples below contain when-clauses.Examples:
- When I paid her one dollar, she answered my question.
- She answered my question when I paid her one dollar.
Example:
- I paid her one dollar when she answered my question.
ADVERB PLACEMENT
The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.Examples:
- You just called Debbie.
- Did you just call Debbie?
ACTIVE / PASSIVE
Examples:- Tom repaired the car. Active
- The car was repaired by Tom. Passive
Pronunciation of the ending -ed in the Simple Past
In the Simple Past we add -ed to regular verbs. Be careful pronuncing the verbs:1) verbs ending in -ed preceded by a voiceless consonant [p, k, f, ʃ, ʧ, s, θ]
-> speak [t].
The -e is silent. Example: I stop - I stopped [stɒpt]
2) verbs ending in -ed preceded by a voiced consonant [b, g, v, ʒ, ʤ, z, ð, l, m, n] or a vowel
-> speak [d].
The -e is silent. Example: I clean - I cleaned [kli:nd]
3) verbs ending in -ed preceded by [t] or [d]
-> speak [ɪd].
The -e changes to [ɪ]. Example: I visit - I visited [vɪzɪtɪd]
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