







In English we use the past simple tense to talk about finished actions in the past.
We use 'did' as an auxiliary verb in negatives and questions and we often use the past simple with past time phrases such as 5 minutes ago, yesterday, last week, in the 1980s, and when I was a child.
Notes for use of past simple :
In English, to change verbs to the past tense, we add '-ed' to regular verbs. For example;
work --> worked
live --> lived
walk --> walked
If the verb ends in 'e', we drop the 'e' before adding '-ed'. For example;
dance --> danced
smile --> smiled
phone --> phoned
If the verb ends in a vowel + consonant, we double the last consonant. For example;
stop --> stopped
tag --> tagged
plan --> planned
If the verb has more than one syllable, we double the consonant at the end only if the last syllable is stressed. For example;
prefer --> preferred
permit --> permitted
regret --> regretted
If the last syllable of the verb is not stressed, we do not double the last consonant. For example;
visit --> visited
happen --> happened
develop --> developed
In British English, verbs ending in 'l' double the 'l' before '-ed' whether the last syllable is stressed or not. For example;
travel --> travelled
cancel --> cancelled
If the verb ends in a 'y' or a 'w', we do not double it when we add '-ed'. For example;
stay --> stayed
play --> played
sew --> sewed
In English we do not double the consonant if the verb has two vowels before the last consonant. For example;
boil --> boiled
explain --> explained
In English we also do not double the consonant if the verb ends in two consonants. For example;
help --> helped
start --> started
However, irregular verbs change to completely different words in the past tense. For example;
go --> went
take --> took
know --> knew
The table below shows the different forms of past simple :
Example Verb : live | I / You / We / They / He / She / It |
| Positive | ... lived. |
| Negative | ... didn't live. |
Questions | Did ... live? |
| Short answers | Yes, ... did. / No, ... didn't. |
For the verb 'to be' we use 'was' and 'were'' in the past simple. No auxiliary verbs are used in negative sentences and questions.
Verb : Be | I / He / She / It | You / We / They |
| Positive | ... was ... | ... were ... |
| Negative | ... wasn't ... | ... weren't ... |
| Questions | Was ... ... ? | Were ... ...? |
| Short answers | Yes, ... was. / No, ... wasn't. | Yes, ... were. / No, ... weren't. |
Past Simple Example Sentences :
Positive Examples of Past Simple :
Negative Examples of Past Simple :
Question Examples of Past Simple :
| Past simple example sentences | |
|---|---|
| How did you know he was a male cat? | 고양이가 수컷인 건 어떻게 알았어요? |
| She was yelling at me like how dirty we were... | 우리가 너무 더럽다고 소리를 지르고... |
| What's the joke? I didn't get it. | 뭐가 농담인데? 모르겠는데. |
| Did you have much money in your purse? | 지갑에 돈이 많이 있었어요? |
| Sorry, didn't I tell you that before? | 미안, 말 안해줬나? |
| Yes, I managed to see the last one... But I didn't like it! | 응, 마지막 약속 집은 봤는데... 마음에 안 들잖아! |
| I thought your laptop was worth a cigarette! | 네 노트북이 담배 한 개피 값은 되는 줄 알았지! |
| They are an old couple, he thought I was his son. | 나이 든 부부인데, 내가 아들인 줄 아신 모양이야. |
| I met him last week at the vet. | 지난 주에 동물병원에서 만났어. |
| It's good you called me before you came today. | 오시기 전에 전화하셔서 정말 다행이네요. |
| The water spilled all over the bench, too! | 의자에도 물이 다 튀었어! |
| You drank too many beers last night! | 어젯 밤에 맥주 너무 많이 따더라! |
| After a couple of minutes, I heard a scream from the kitchen... | 몇 분 뒤에, 부엌에서 비명소리가 들려서... |
| You didn't tell me anything about that... | 나한테는 아무 말도 안해줬잖아... |
| Oh, by the way, one of my best friends from Australia called me... | 아, 그나저나, 호주에서 나하고 제일 친한 친구 중 한명한테서 연락이 왔는데... |
| You know we talked about bringing Pogo here one day. | 언젠가 여기 포고를 데려올까 하는 얘기를 했잖아. |
| 5 minutes before I arrived, I called her, but she didn't answer. | 도착하기 5분 전에 전화를 했는데, 안 받잖아. |
| Actually, I was going to ask you something at the pub, but Diego interrupted me. | 실은, 술집에서 뭘 물어보려고 했는데, 디에고가 끼어들어서. |
| What made you change your mind? | 왜 생각을 바꿨어? |
| Yes they do, they looked after him last time. | 있기야 하지, 전에도 봐줬으니까. |