When to use the past simple in English?

The most important thing you should know about the past simple or past simple in English is that

it is used to express events or states that happened in the distant or near past.

Let's not forget that sentences with negative or interrogative forms of the past simple in English

are constantly built using the auxiliary verb (did) plus the primordial verb without modification,

that is, in its base form. In this verb tense there are some expressions that serve to create context

and that clarify the information that is presented. You can use them at the beginning or at the

end of the sentence and they will be an element of clarity.

Ejemplos del pasado simple en inglés

A year ago they got They got married a year Hace un año se casaron
married ago

In 323 BC Alexander the Alexander the Great died Alejandro Magno murió en el
Great died in 323 BC año 323 aC

When I was young I ran  I ran every morning when Cuando era joven corría
every morning I was young todas las mañanas

There is a special case of using the past tense that you should be aware of: although the past

tense of dog is could, it is not used to express a situation or action from the past, but to offer a

formal framework in a question. Could you sign here, please? = Could you sign here, please?

How are simple sentences made in the past tense in English? Now let's see how the sentence is

formed in the past simple, depending on its use with regular or irregular verbs in English.

Composition of the simple past with regular verbs Later we will see how regular verbs change

according to the ending they have in their elemental form.

1. -d is the ending used on verbs ending in e.

Verbo en forma
Pasado Ejemplo
básica

Arrive Arrived He arrived three hours ago= Él llegó hace tres horas

Change Change We changed our logo = Nosotros cambiamos nuestro

d logo

Love Loved I loved the trip to Egypt = Me encantó el viaje a Egipto

2. -ed is the ending used on verbs that end in a consonant or in a y. don't forget that if the verb

ends in a consonant+y, you must replace the y with the i and at the end use the ending -ed.

Verbo en forma
Pasado Ejemplo
básica

Walk Walked I walked the dog last night= Yo paseé al perro anoche

Kiss Kissed He kissed my forehead= Él besó mi frente

Enjoy Enjoye They enjoyed the welcome party = Ellos disfrutaron la

 d fiesta de bienvenida

Play Played She played piano every night = Ella tocaba el piano todas
las noches

Marry Marrie They got married in 7 countries = Ellos se casaron en 7

d países

Try Tried He tried to be vegetarian = Él intentó ser vegetariano 

Since you already know how each of the endings of the regular verbs are modified, let's see how

the sentences are structured according to their type (affirmative, negative and interrogative) and

some clear examples so that you can use them.

Afirmativa Sujeto + verbo (-d, -ed) + complemento

They lived together for 53 years= Ellos vivieron juntos por 53 años

She cried with the end of the movie= Ella lloró con el final de la película 

Negativa Sujeto + did not + verbo en forma básica + complemento

They didn’t discuss the problem last night = Ellos no discutieron el problema
 anoche

I didn't enjoy my childhood = Yo no disfruté mi infancia

He didn't finish his English assignment = Él no terminó su tarea de inglés

Interrogativ Did + sujeto + verbo en forma básica + complemento

a

Did they clean the whole house? = ¿Ellos limpiaron toda la casa? 

Did she call me? = ¿Ella me llamó? 

Don't forget that sentences with the negative or interrogative form of the past simple in English

are always built using the auxiliary verb did plus the main verb without modifications, that is, in

its basic form.

• Group 1. When the verbs in their written form end in -ed, they must be pronounced as /id/. For

example: verbs ending in ent or te.

Verbo en forma básica Verbo en past simple Pronunciación

Start Started /star-tid/

Visit Visited /vih-sih-tid/

 Rent Rented /rehn-tid/

Repeat Repeated /ree-pee-tid/

Create Created /cree-ey-tid/

Hate Hated /hey-tid/ 

Similarly, verbs ending in -d or -de are pronounced with /id/. For example:

Pronunciaci
Verbo en forma básica Verbo en past simple
ón

Crowd Crowded /krow-did/

Fold Folded /fold-did/

Provide Provided /pro-viy-did/

Group 2. In this case we will not talk about the written ending but its pronunciation. When the

sound that the last section of the word has is “deaf”, that is, when the vocal cords do not vibrate

(letters: p, k, ch, sh, f, s, h); and it is pronounced like a t (like m when pronouncing cat), its

written form will surely end in -ed. Other examples:

 Verbo en forma Pronunciació
Verbo en past simple
básica n

Stop Stopped /stopt/

Like Liked /laikt/

Park Parked /parkt/

Group 3. As in the previous group, the pronunciation of the following verbs does not depend on

their writing, but on the vibration of the vocal cords when pronouncing them. In this case, they

will be all the verbs ending in letters such as: b, g, i, z, m, l, among others, whose sound is equal

to /d/ and that in their written form end in -ed. For example:

Verbo en forma básica Verbo en past simple Pronunciación

Hug Hugged /hugd/

Cry Cried /crayd/

Roar Roared /rord/