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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
I was planning on stirfrying some red peppers and mushrooms!	Estava planejando saltear pimentos vermelhos e cogumelos!
Thank god you weren't looking for red wine!	Ainda bem que você não estava comprando vinho tinto!
And the girls were too busy ordering.	E as raparigas estavam muito ocupadas pedindo.
She was in the kitchen, too, preparing something to cook.	Ela também estava na cozinha, preparando algo para comer.
Yes, I already made myself a coffee while you were sleeping.	Sim, eu já preparei um café para mim quando você estava dormindo.
I hope you weren't looking for something urgently!	Espero que não seja uma situação urgente!
Really? What was she saying?	Sério? O que estava dizendo ela?
Noone was paying attention to your "precious" bag.	Ninguém estava prestando atenção a seu "precioso" saco.
And you pretended you didn't know I was living here.	E você fingiu não saber que eu estava vivendo aqui.
How did you know you were knocking on the right door?	Como você sabia que estava batendo na porta certa?
The other day, you complained about how loud I was snoring.	No outro dia, você se queixou de como eu roncava alto.
Hm, why was he begging the fairy to turn him into a real kid then?	Hum, então por que é que ele pediu à fada para o transformar em um garoto verdadeiro?
I was planning on cooking some meat, originally.	Inicialmente, estava planejando cozinhar carne.
Once when Bear was little, we were walking along a dark street...	Uma vez, quando o Bear era bebê, nós estavamos andando por um rua escura...
Okay, long story short, I was cooking some chips last night.	Muito bem, em suma, eu estava fritando umas batatas a noite passada.
Yeah... What was I saying?	Sim... O que estava eu dizendo?
Yes, sorry, I was thinking of getting stock powder at the shop.	Sim, desculpe, eu estava pensando comprar caldo de frango em pó no supermercado.
I was also training new workers how to make coffee.	Também ensinava os novos funcionários a fazer café.
I was wondering where that chorizo smell was coming from.	Eu me estava perguntando de onde vinha esse cheiro a chouriço.
When I came, you were at the bar getting yourself a beer.	Quando eu cheguei, você estava no bar pedindo uma cerveja para você.

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