Past Tenses Revision - all of them in one place!

Are you sometimes confused about which tense to use when talking about the past? Don't worry, you're not the only one!

Today we'll revise and compare all the past tenses that cause your confusion.

Let's be clear - I do not think that you need all of them to survive (you definately don't need Past Perfect Continuous to survive:) ) but I also don't encourage using Past Simple for each and every story you tell. Come on - you're better than that!

Remind yourself of the passion you once had for learning the language, put your ambitious hat on - and ... let's go!

You can download the printable version of this post with some extra speaking activities by clicking here.

Past Simple
Present Perfect Simple
Past Continuous
Past Perfect
Past Perfect Continuous
Construction:

I bought a car last week.
 
I didn’t buy a car last week.
 
Did you buy a car last week?
Construction:

I’ve bought a car this week.
 
I haven’t bought a car this week.
 
Have you bought a car this week?
Construction:

I was buying a book when I noticed Wendy.
 
I wasn’t buying a book when I noticed Wendy.
 
Were you buying a book when you noticed Wendy?
Construction:

I had bought a car before I moved to London.
 
I hadn’t bought a car before I moved to London.
 
Had you bought a car before you moved to London?
Construction:

I had been playing football for an hour when it started to rain.
 
I hadn’t been playing football.
 
Had you been playing football when it started to rain?
Usage:
 
1.Actions that happened in the past. The time of the action is finished and important.
Ex: She didn’t eat anything yesterday morning.
 




2.Past states and habits.

Ex: I never woke up before 8.00 in those days. (habit)

Ex: I lived and worked in Portugal when I was younger. (state)

3.Actions that happened in the past one after another.
Ex: I came back home, ate dinner and went to sleep.
Usage:
 
1.For actions that are finished but the time of the action is not finished.
Ex: She hasn’t eaten anything this morning.
  
2.Actions that are finished but the time of the action is not important or not clear.
Ex: I’ve recently moved to London.
Usage:
 
1.An action that was in progress simultaneously with another action.
Ex: I was watching a film while my mum was making dinner.
 
2.An action that was in progress in the past. (Often interrupted by another, shorter action. The shorter action is put in Past Simple.)
Ex: Tina was listening to the radio when the telephone rang.
Ex: What were you doing yesterday at 10.00? I couldn’t reach you on the phone.
 
Usage:
 
1.Actions that had happened in the past before something else happened.
Ex: I had lived in Portugal before I moved to England.
Ex: We got married after we had moved in together.
Usage:
 
1.Actions that had been happening for a period of time before something else happened.
Ex: The boys had been watching cartoons for hours before mother told them to do their homework.
 
2.Actions that had been happening for some time in the past so we could see the effects.
Ex: When I woke up yesterday morning the sun was shining. But it had been raining at night as I saw the ground was wet.
Key words:
yesterday; last...(month, year, Monday); ....(2 years, a week)ago; for...(a week, a year)
Key words:
this... (week, year, summer);
recently; lately; just; already
Key words:
when; while; during;
yesterday at 7.00
Key words:
before, after, then, when
Key words:
for...(an hour, 5 years); before






 
Answer these questions about your past:
 
1.      What were you doing last Saturday in the afternoon?
2.      What did you watch last week?
3.      What was the last book you read?
4.      What had you been doing before your dinner yesterday?
5.      Did you have a hero / favourite book character when you were a child?
6.      What had been your favourite past time before you became an adult?
7.      Who was your favourite family member when you were a kid? Why?
8.      Do you remember your first day at school? What is your most vivid memory of school times?
9.      Have you read anything recently?
10.  Name 3 positive things you’ve achieved this year.
 
 

 
 
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