







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 | |
|---|---|
| Actually, I was going to ask you something at the pub, but Diego interrupted me. | 실은, 술집에서 뭘 물어보려고 했는데, 디에고가 끼어들어서. |
| Because you didn't remind me! | 네가 얘기를 안 해주길래! |
| At least you didn't waste your whole day off for nothing! | 그래도 아무것도 안 하고 하루를 보내지는 않았네! |
| I thought you turned it on when you went home. | 집에 가서 휴대폰 켠 줄 알았더니. |
| It totally slipped my mind! | 완전히 까먹었어! |
| Yes, I moved from Brighton about a month ago. | 네, 브라이튼에서 한달 쯤 전에 이사왔어요. |
| But you just did it, why did you kill the wasp, then? | 방금 죽이고 왔잖아, 그럼 말벌은 왜 죽인 거야? |
| Because it's in my bag, I didn't hear it. | 가방에 넣어둬서 못 들었지. |
| Exactly... So I gave up and decided to sit at a cafe and have a coffee. | 내 말이... 그래서 포기하고 카페에 앉아서 커피 한 잔 하려고 했지. |
| No, I didn't even know her name, until today. | 아니, 저 사람 이름도 오늘 전까지는 몰랐다구. |
| Diego was living in this house and there was a vacancy. | 디에고가 이 집에 살고 있었는데 방이 비길래. |
| Yes, while I was looking at the wine, the rice fell... | 응, 와인을 보고 있는데, 쌀이 떨어져서... |
| What happened to this one? | 이 사람은 또 뭐가 문제래? |
| What did you cook for breakfast? | 아침으로 뭘 요리한 거야? |
| Oh, what did she say? | 아, 뭐랬길래? |
| Dude, I heard you shagging till late last night. | 자식아, 어젯밤 늦게까지 쿵덕쿵덕거리는 소리 다 들었어. |
| When I first came to England, I thought it was a holiday only for banks. | 영국에 처음 왔을 때, 뱅크 홀리데이라길래 은행만 쉬는 날인 줄 알았죠. |
| The book was too big for my bag, it didn't fit! | 책이 너무 컸다구, 가방에 안 들어가! |
| Oh, by the way, one of my best friends from Australia called me... | 아, 그나저나, 호주에서 나하고 제일 친한 친구 중 한명한테서 연락이 왔는데... |
| Anyway, I called the girl again, and of course, she didn't answer. | 아무튼 그래서 다시 전화를 했는데, 역시나 이번에도 전화를 안 받잖아. |