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Past continuous Exercises

( Free Online English Grammar Lessons )

Read time : 2 minutes

Past Continuous Form : ( Was / were + verb -ing )

In English we use the past continuous to talk about an action taking place during a period of time in the past. We usually use it with past simple.

The table below shows the different forms of past continuous :

Example verb : study	I / He / She / It	You / We / They
Positive	... was studying.	... were studying.
Negative	... wasn't studying.	... weren't studying.
Questions	Was ... studying?	Were ... studying?
Short answers	Yes, ... was. / No, ... wasn't.	Yes, ... were. / No, ... weren't.

In English we use the past continuous to show that a longer action in the past was interrupted. The interruption is usually a shorter action in the past simple. This can be a real interruption or just an interruption in time.

Past Continuous Examples Sentences :

Positive Examples of Past Continuous :

I was cooking dinner when she phoned.
While we were cycling in the park, it started to rain.
While Alex was exercising, someone stole his bike.

Negative Examples of Past Continuous :

You were not listening to the teacher when she gave us our homework.
He wasn't paying attention when the fire alarm went off.
We weren't watching the film during the scary parts.

Question Examples of Past Continuous :

What were you doing when you had the car accident?
What were you doing when the police turned up?
Where was he living when the attack happened in London?

In English we can also use a specific time as an interruption.

Examples Sentences :

Last night at 6 PM, I was travelling home.
At midnight, I was still studying for my exam.
Yesterday at this time, I was sitting on a beach in Australia.

When you use the past continuous with two actions in the same sentence, it means that both actions were happening at the same time. The actions are parallel.

Examples Sentences :

I was swimming while he was sunbathing.
While Emily was cooking, Brian was doing his homework.
Were you listening when I was speaking to you?
They were sitting by the pool, sipping cocktails, and talking about life.

Past continuous example sentences
Thank god you weren't looking for red wine!	Gottseidank hast du nicht nach rotem Wein gesucht!
Once when Bear was little, we were walking along a dark street...	Einmal, als Bear klein war, sind wir auf einer dunklen Straße gelaufen.
And the girls were too busy ordering.	Und die Mädels waren zu beschäftigt mit bestellen.
I hope you weren't looking for something urgently!	Ich hoffe du hast nicht dringend nach etwas gesucht!
But I don't know where he was getting it from.	Aber ich habe keine Ahnung wo er ihn gekauft hat.
I was planning on stirfrying some red peppers and mushrooms!	Ich hatte geplant etwas rote Paprika und Pilze kurz anzubraten!
Okay, long story short, I was cooking some chips last night.	Okay, lange Rede kurzer Sinn. Ich habe letzte Nacht ein paar Pommes gemacht.
When I came, you were at the bar getting yourself a beer.	Als ich kam, warst du an der Bar und hast dir ein Bier geholt.
The other day, you complained about how loud I was snoring.	Neulich hast du dich beschwert wie laut ich schnarche.
She was in the kitchen, too, preparing something to cook.	Sie war auch in der Küche und hat sich etwas zum Essen zubereitet.
Oh, I see, she was talking about it last night!	Oh ich verstehe. Sie hat letzte Nacht darüber gesprochen!
I was planning on cooking some meat, originally.	Ich habe eigentlich geplant etwas Fleisch zu kochen.
Really? What was she saying?	Echt? Was hat sie gesagt?
I thought Diego was taking you somewhere.	Ich dachte Diego nimmt dich irgendwohin mit.
I was also training new workers how to make coffee.	Außerdem habe ich neuen Mitarbeitern gezeigt, wie man Kaffee macht.
Yes, sorry, I was thinking of getting stock powder at the shop.	Ja, entschuldige. Ich habe mir im Supermarkt überlegt die Brühe in Pulverform zu kaufen.
I think she definitely understood I was lying!	Ich denke sie hat definitiv verstanden, dass ich gelogen habe!
Alright Nick, what were you saying?	Okay Nick, was meintest du?
And you pretended you didn't know I was living here.	Und du hast so getan als wüsstest du nicht, dass ich hier wohne.
Yeah, it wasn't only Pogo, she was complaining about everything!	Ja, es war nicht nur Pogo. Sie hat sie über alles beschwert!

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