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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 also training new workers how to make coffee.	Außerdem habe ich neuen Mitarbeitern gezeigt, wie man Kaffee macht.
That's what I was planning.	Das hatte ich vor.
The other day, you complained about how loud I was snoring.	Neulich hast du dich beschwert wie laut ich schnarche.
Really? What was she saying?	Echt? Was hat sie gesagt?
Yeah, it wasn't only Pogo, she was complaining about everything!	Ja, es war nicht nur Pogo. Sie hat sie über alles beschwert!
I was planning on stirfrying some red peppers and mushrooms!	Ich hatte geplant etwas rote Paprika und Pilze kurz anzubraten!
No, I wasn't interested at all, I was just trying to be nice to her.	Nein, ich war überhaupt nicht interessiert. Ich wollte nur nett zu ihr sein.
Hm, why was he begging the fairy to turn him into a real kid then?	Hmm, warum hat er die Fee dann gebeten ihn in ein echtes Kind zu verwandeln?
I was planning on cooking some meat, originally.	Ich habe eigentlich geplant etwas Fleisch zu kochen.
I was wondering where that chorizo smell was coming from.	Ich habe mich gewundert, woher dieser Chorizo-Geruch kam.
Thank god you weren't looking for red wine!	Gottseidank hast du nicht nach rotem Wein gesucht!
I thought Diego was taking you somewhere.	Ich dachte Diego nimmt dich irgendwohin mit.
Yeah... What was I saying?	Ja... Was habe ich gesagt?
But I don't know where he was getting it from.	Aber ich habe keine Ahnung wo er ihn gekauft hat.
I was just trying to be more realistic!	Ich habe nur versucht etwas realistischer zu sein!
Okay, long story short, I was cooking some chips last night.	Okay, lange Rede kurzer Sinn. Ich habe letzte Nacht ein paar Pommes gemacht.
Noone was paying attention to your "precious" bag.	Keiner hat auf deine "wertvolle" Tasche aufgepasst.
She was in the kitchen, too, preparing something to cook.	Sie war auch in der Küche und hat sich etwas zum Essen zubereitet.
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.
I think she definitely understood I was lying!	Ich denke sie hat definitiv verstanden, dass ich gelogen habe!

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