







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 | |
|---|---|
| But it seems Julianne complained about Pogo to Nick. | 但是看来朱莉安娜在向尼克抱怨Pogo。 |
| Because it's in my bag, I didn't hear it. | 因为手机在我包里,我没听到。 |
| Then, apparently I fell asleep... And slept for a couple of hours! | 然后,显然我睡着了... 睡了几个小时! |
| Yes they do, they looked after him last time. | 是的,他们可以,他们上次就帮忙照顾地它。 |
| Basically everything, it was like a haunted hippie house. | 基本上全部都有问题,它就像一个嬉皮士鬼屋。 |
| You nearly gave me a heart attack! | 你差点让我心脏病发作了! |
| Yes, while I was looking at the wine, the rice fell... | 是的,在我看酒的时候,米袋掉下来了... |
| What brought you to London? | 是怎样的机缘使你来到了伦敦? |
| I don't even want to remember it, but, since you asked... | 我甚至都不想提,但是,既然你问了... |
| Anyway, what did you say to the old lady? | 不管怎样,你对老妇人说了什么? |
| But I really wanted to go there tonight. | 但是我今晚真的想去那里。 |
| We met at the vet a couple of weeks ago. | 我们是几周前在兽医诊所认识的。 |
| And... Your cat? I didn't know you had a cat! | 还有... 你的猫?我不知道你还有只猫! |
| There was nothing wrong with you at the shop. | 你在商店的时候还是好好的。 |
| Of course, we all grew up together. | 当然,我们都是一起长大的。 |
| And now you've woken me up just when I was about to sleep! | 而现在我刚要睡着,就被你们给吵醒了! |
| 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。 |
| Actually, I was going to ask you something at the pub, but Diego interrupted me. | 实际上,我在酒吧想要问你一个问题,但是迭戈打断了我。 |
| I got you a cappuccino. | 我带的是卡布奇诺。 |
| It totally slipped my mind! | 然后就忘得一干二净了! |