GROUP 2:

ABIRAMI
TEE SHA NEY
LOH JIA WEI
TAN WEI JIAN

SIMPLE PAST
PAST CONTINUOUS
PAST PERFECT
SIMPLE PAST
 FORM
[VERB+ed] or irregular verbs

 Examples:
 You called Debbie.
 Did you call Debbie?
 You did not call Debbie.
USE 1 COMPLETED ACTION IN THE PAST

 Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action

started and finished at a specific time in the past.
Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the
specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.

 Examples:
o I saw a movie yesterday.
o I didn't see a play yesterday.
o Last year, I traveled to Japan.
o Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.
o Did you have dinner last night?
o She washed her car.
o He didn't wash his car.
USE 2 A SERIES OF COMPLETED
ACTIONS
 We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed
actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd,
4th, and so on.

 Examples:
 I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place
to swim.
 He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at
9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
 Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs?
USE 3 DURATION IN PAST

The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and
stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated
by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all
day, all year, etc.

Examples:

 I lived in Brazil for two years.

 Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
 They sat at the beach all day.
 They did not stay at the party the entire time.
 We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.
 A: How long did you wait for them?
B: We waited for one hour.
USE 4 HABITS IN THE PAST
 The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which
stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used
to ." To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we
often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never,
when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.

 Examples:
I studied French when I was a child.
He played the violin.
He didn't play the piano.
Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid?
She worked at the movie theater after school.
They never went to school, they always skipped class.
USE 5 PAST FACTS OR GENERALIZATIONS

 The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts

or generalizations which are no longer true. As in USE 4
above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the
expression "used to."

 Examples:
She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing.
He didn't like tomatoes before.
Did you live in Texas when you were a kid?
People paid much more to make cell phone calls in the past.
IMPORTANT WHEN-CLAUSES HAPPEN
FIRST
 Clauses are groups of words which have meaning but are
often not complete sentences. Some clauses begin with
the word "when" such as "when I dropped my pen..." or
"when class began..." These clauses are called when-
clauses, and they are very important. The examples
below contain when-clauses.
Examples:

When I paid her one dollar,

she answered my question.
She answered my question
when I paid her one dollar.
 When-clauses are important because they always happen first
when both clauses are in the Simple Past. Both of the examples
above mean the same thing: first, I paid her one dollar, and
then, she answered my question. It is not important whether
"when I paid her one dollar" is at the beginning of the sentence
or at the end of the sentence. However, the example below has
a different meaning. First, she answered my question, and then,
I paid her one dollar.

 Example:
I paid her one dollar when she answered my question.
ADVERB PLACEMENT

 The examples below show the placement for grammar

adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

 Examples:
You just called Debbie.
Did you just call Debbie?
ACTIVE / PASSIVE

Examples:

Tom repaired the car. Active

The car was repaired by
Tom. Passive
PAST CONTINUOUS

 FORM
[was/were + present participle]

 Examples:
You were studying when she called.
Were you studying when she called?
You were not studying when she called.
USE 1 INTERRUPTED ACTION IN THE PAST

 Use the Past Continuous to indicate that a longer action

in the past was interrupted. The interruption is usually a
shorter action in the Simple Past. Remember this can be
a real interruption or just an interruption in time.
 Examples:
I was watching TV when she called.
When the phone rang, she was writing a letter.
While we were having the picnic, it started to rain.
What were you doing when the earthquake started?
I was listening to my iPod, so I didn't hear the fire alarm.
You were not listening to me when I told you to turn the oven off.
While John was sleeping last night, someone stole his car.
Sammy was waiting for us when we got off the plane.
While I was writing the email, the computer suddenly went off.
A: What were you doing when you broke your leg?
B: I was snowboarding.
USE 2 SPECIFIC TIME AS AN INTERRUPTION

 In USE 1, described above, the Past Continuous is

interrupted by a shorter action in the Simple Past.
However, you can also use a specific time as an
interruption.

 Examples:
Last night at 6p.m., I was eating dinner.
At midnight, we were still driving through the desert.
Yesterday at this time, I was sitting at my desk at work.
 IMPORTANT
In the Simple Past, a specific time is used to show when an
action began or finished. In the Past Continuous, a specific
time only interrupts the action.

 Examples:
Last night at 6p.m., I ate dinner.
I started eating at 6p.m.
Last night at 6p.m., I was eating dinner.
I started earlier; and at 6p.m., I was in the process of eating dinner.
USE 3 PARALLEL ACTIONS
When you use the Past Continuous with two actions in the same
sentence, it expresses the idea that both actions were happening at
the same time. The actions are parallel.

Examples:

I was studying while he was making dinner.

While Ellen was reading, Tim was watching television.
Were you listening while he was talking?
I wasn't paying attention while I was writing the letter, so I made
several mistakes.
What were you doing while you were waiting?
Thomas wasn't working, and I wasn't working either.
They were eating dinner, discussing their plans, and having a
good time.
USE 4 ATMOSPHERE

 In English, we often use a series of parallel actions to

describe the atmosphere at a particular time in the past.

 Example:
When I walked into the office, several people were busily
typing, some were talking on the phones, the boss was
yelling directions, and customers were waiting to be helped.
One customer was yelling at a secretary and waving his
hands. Others were complaining to each other about the bad
service.
USE 5 REPETITION AND IRRITATION WITH "ALWAYS"

 The Past Continuous with words such as "always" or

"constantly" expresses the idea that something irritating
or shocking often happened in the past. The concept is
very similar to the expression "used to" but with negative
emotion. Remember to put the words "always" or
"constantly" between "be" and "verb+ing."
Examples:

She was always coming to class

late.
He was constantly talking. He
annoyed everyone.
I didn't like them because they were
always complaining.
WHILE VS. WHEN
 Clauses are groups of words which have meaning, but
are often not complete sentences. Some clauses begin
with the word "when" such as "when she called" or
"when it bit me." Other clauses begin with "while" such
as "while she was sleeping" and "while he was surfing."
When you talk about things in the past, "when" is most
often followed by the verb tense Simple Past, whereas
"while" is usually followed by Past Continuous. "While"
expresses the idea of "during that time." Study the
examples below. They have similar meanings, but they
emphasize different parts of the sentence.
Examples:

I was studying when she called.

While I was studying, she
called.
REMEMBER NON-CONTINUOUS VERBS / MIXED VERBS

 It is important to remember that Non-Continuous Verbs

cannot be used in any continuous tenses. Also, certain
non-continuous meanings for Mixed Verbs cannot be
used in continuous tenses. Instead of using Past
Continuous with these verbs, you must use Simple Past.

 Examples:
o Jane was being at my house when you arrived. Not Correct
o Jane was at my house when you arrived. Correct
ADVERB PLACEMENT

 The examples below show the placement for grammar

adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

 Examples:
You were just studying when she called.
Were you just studying when she called?
ACTIVE / PASSIVE

 Examples:
The salesman was helping the customer when the thief came
into the store. Active
The customer was being helped by the salesman when the
thief came into the store. Passive
PAST PERFECT
 FORM
[had + past participle]

 Examples:
You had studied English before you moved to New York.
Had you studied English before you moved to New York?
You had not studied English before you moved to New York.
USE 1 COMPLETED ACTION BEFORE SOMETHING IN THE PAST

 The Past Perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another
action in the past. It can also show that something happened before a
specific time in the past.
 Examples:
I had never seen such a beautiful beach before I went to Kauai.
I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
Tony knew Istanbul so well because he had visited the city
several times.
Had Susan ever studied Thai before she moved to Thailand?
She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
Kristine had never been to an opera before last night.
We were not able to get a hotel room because we had not
booked in advance.
A: Had you ever visited the U.S. before your trip in 2006?
B: Yes, I had been to the U.S. once before.
USE 2 DURATION BEFORE SOMETHING IN THE PAST (NON-
CONTINUOUS VERBS)

 With Non-Continuous Verbs and some non-continuous

uses of Mixed Verbs, we use the Past Perfect to show
that something started in the past and continued up until
another action in the past.
 Examples:
We had had that car for ten years before it broke down.
By the time Alex finished his studies, he had been in London for
over eight years.
They felt bad about selling the house because they had owned it for
more than forty years.

 Although the above use of Past Perfect is normally limited to

Non-Continuous Verbs and non-continuous uses of Mixed
Verbs, the words "live," "work," "teach," and "study" are
sometimes used in this way even though they are NOT Non-
Continuous Verbs.
IMPORTANT SPECIFIC TIMES WITH THE PAST PERFECT

 Unlike with the Present Perfect, it is possible to use

specific time words or phrases with the Past Perfect.
Although this is possible, it is usually not necessary.

 Example:
 She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before
she moved in with them in 1996.
 MOREOVER
If the Past Perfect action did occur at a specific time, the
Simple Past can be used instead of the Past Perfect when
"before" or "after" is used in the sentence. The words "before"
and "after" actually tell you what happens first, so the Past
Perfect is optional. For this reason, both sentences below are
correct.

 Examples:
She had visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she
moved in with them in 1996.
She visited her Japanese relatives once in 1993 before she moved in
with them in 1996.
 HOWEVER
If the Past Perfect is not referring to an action at a specific
time, Past Perfect is not optional. Compare the examples
below. Here Past Perfect is referring to a lack of experience
rather than an action at a specific time. For this reason, Simple
Past cannot be used.

 Examples:
She never saw a bear before she moved to Alaska. Not Correct
She had never seen a bear before she moved to Alaska. Correct
ADVERB PLACEMENT

 The examples below show the placement for grammar

adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

 Examples:
You had previously studied English before you moved to
New York.
Had you previously studied English before you moved to
New York?
ACTIVE / PASSIVE

 Examples:
George had repaired many cars before he received his
mechanic's license. Active
Many cars had been repaired by George before he received
his mechanic's license. Passive
THANK YOU