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Past Tense
The past tense is a verb tense expressing activity, action state or being in the past. In
English, there are four types of past tense :
1. Simple Past Tense
2. Past Continuous Tense
3. Past Perfect Tense
4. Past Perfect Continuous Tense

1. Simple Past Tense
The Simple Past Tense, often just called the Past Tense, is easy to use in English. If you
already know how to use the Present Tense, then the Past Tense will be easy. In general, the
Past Tense is used to talk about something that started and finished at a definite time in the
past.
Nominal sentence
(+) S+To be (WAS/WERE) + O/C
(-) S+ To be (WAS/WERE) + NOT + O/C
(?) To be (WAS/WERE) + O/C + ?
Example :
1. (+) I was very thirsty just now
(-) I wasnt very thirsty just now
(?) Were you very thirsty just now?
Yes, I was/No, I wasnt
2. (+) she was a shy girl
(-) she wasnt a shy girl
(?) Were she was a shy girl?
Yes, she was/No, she wasnt
3. (+) they was in Australia
(-) They wasnt in Australia
(+) Were they was in Australia?
Yes, they was/No, they wasnt
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4. (+) Budi was a careless boy
(-) Budi wasnt a careless boy
(?) Were budi was a careless boy?
Yes, he was/No, he wasnt
Verbal Sentence
(+) S+V II + O/C
(-) S+DID NOT+V I + O/C
(?) DID+S+V I + O/C ?
Example :
1. (+) I cleaned my car on Monday
(-) I did not clean my car on Monday
(?) Did you clean your car on Monday?
Yes, I did/No, I didnt
2. (+) she played chess on Sunday
(-) She did not play chess on Sunday
(?) Did she play chess on Sunday?
Yes, she did/No, she didnt
3. (+) I cleaned my bathroom on Saturday
(-) I did not clean my bathroom on Saturday
(?) Did you clean your bathroom on Saturday?
Yes, I did/No, I didnt
4. (+) He played football on Friday
(-) He did not play football on Friday
(?) Did he play football on Friday?
Yes, he did/No, he didnt
5. (+) we cooked fried rice on Monday
(-) We did not cook fried rice on Monday
(?) Did we cook fried rice on Sunday?
Yes, we did,/No, we didnt
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2. Past Continuous Tense
The past continuous tense expresses action at a particular moment in the past.The action
started before that moment but has not finished at that moment. For example, yesterday I
watched a film on TV. The film started at 7pm and finished at 9pm. When we use the past
continuous tense, our listener usually knows or understands what time we are talking
about.
The Formula of Past Continuous Tense :
(+) S + to be (was/were) + v-ing + O/C
(-) S + to be (was/were) + not + v-ing + O/C
(?) to be (was/were) + S + v-ing + O/C + ?
Example :
1. I was sleeping when you came home last night.
2. I wasnt sleeping when you came home last night.
3. Was I sleeping when you came home last night?
We often use the past continuous tense to "set the scene" in stories. We use it to describe
the background situation at the moment when the action begins. Often, the story starts
with the past continuous tense and then moves into the simple past tense. Here is an
example:
" James Bond was driving through town. It was raining. The wind was blowing hard.
Nobody was walking in the streets. Suddenly, Bond saw the killer in a telephone box..."
3. Past Perfect Tense
Past perfect is a frame of sentence which is used to indicate an activity that has been
happened in a past. But the activity is yet certain to do at once : Pattern : + S + had + V3 +
O/C S + had + not + V3 + O/C ? had + S + V3 + O/C + ?
Adverb of time : since, ago, by the end of time ago, for two years ago, etc...
Example : + She had gone to minnesota since twelve hours ago from KNIA
- She had gone to minnesota since twelve hours ago from KNIA
?Had she gone to Minnesota since twelve hours ago from KNIA?
The past perfect is used in the same way as the present perfect, but it refers to a time in the
past, not the present.
We use the past perfect tense:
for something that started in the past and continued up to a given time in the past:
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When George died he and Anne had been married for nearly fifty years. She didnt want to
move. She had lived in Liverpool all her life.
4. Past Perfect Continous Tense
Basic form
Subject + HAD + BEEN + Verbing
For Examples:
The boys had been quarreling for half an hour when we arrived home. I had been dating
Angelina for 3 years before we got married. If it hadn't been raining, we would have gone to
the park. She told me that she had been working as a teacher for over 40 years.
Use The Past Perfect Continuous is used to talk about actions or situations that were in
progress before some other actions or situations. There are also other uses. Duration of a
past action up to a certain point in the past:
Showing cause of an action or situation
Third conditional sentences
Reported speech
Use 1: Duration of a Past Action
The main use of the Past Perfect Continuous is to express actions or situations that were in
progress before some other actions or situations. The boys had been quarreling for half an
hour when we arrived home. I had been dating Angelina for 3 years before we got married.
Use 2: Showing Cause Use this tense to show cause of an action or situation in the past.
John was in a detention because he had been misbehaving.The road was wet because it had
been raining. I had to go on a diet because I had been eating too much sugar. Jessica got
sunburnt because she had been lying in the sun too long.
Use 3: Third Conditional
Remember that this tense is also used in third conditional sentences. If it hadn't been
raining, we would have gone to the park.
Use 4: Reported Speech
This tense also appears in Reported speech. She said she knew Charlie had been lying to her.