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 | |
---|---|
Very funny, I think you just killed some time there. | 非常好笑,我想你在那里杀死了一些时间。 |
But I really wanted to go there tonight. | 但是我今晚真的想去那里。 |
Diego was living in this house and there was a vacancy. | 迪亚哥当时就住在这里,而且还有一个空房间。 |
Because it's in my bag, I didn't hear it. | 因为手机在我包里,我没听到。 |
I got you a cappuccino. | 我带的是卡布奇诺。 |
Yeah, I know that, I got this place because I was in a hurry. | 是的,我知道,我当时租这里是因为我很急。 |
What did you cook for breakfast? | 你做了什么早餐? |
So I snore everyday... Why didn't you tell me that before? | 所以我每天都打... 你之前为什么不把这告诉我? |
Anyway, I woke up at 07:00 and went to see the first one. | 不管怎样,我7点钟醒了,然后去看了第一个房子。 |
Did anything happen to you? | 有伤到你吗? |
I didn't have any time to eat anything. | 我刚才没顾上吃任何东西。 |
This was the only one left on the shelf. | 货架上只有这一袋了。 |
We also tried to find a house for you a couple of weeks ago. | 2周前我们也试着为你找房子。 |
What happened? Who was that? | 怎么了?谁来的电话? |
5 minutes before I arrived, I called her, but she didn't answer. | 到之前5分钟,我给她打电话,但是她没接。 |
Yes, I managed to see the last one... But I didn't like it! | 是的,我看了最后一个房子,但是我不喜欢! |
Hm, you didn't tell me that before! | 呃,你之前没有告诉我! |
No, I got myself a macchiato. | 不是的,我自己喝的是玛奇朵。 |
Look at that, it splashed water all over me! | 看看,水溅了我一身! |
Oh, what did she say? | 哦,她说什么了? |