Knowledge of English is almost a vital necessity in our time. Children are introduced to its basics from the very beginning. early age, and a diligent high school student is even able to express himself fluently in English. Like any other language, it has its own characteristics, which should be given a lot of attention.
According to those who began studying as adults, one of the most difficult features of this language is tenses. English speech involves dividing all situations according to the time when they occurred, are occurring or will occur relative to a given moment. Sometimes it is difficult for beginners to immediately master this topic, but diligence, attention to theory and active practice will help you quickly adapt.
One of the most curious times – Past Continuous Tense
It is past tense, but continuous. That is, they use it not just wanting to present the listener with a fact (for example, “Olya cooked dinner yesterday”), but with the goal of describing it, indicating its duration (for example, “Olya cooked dinner yesterday: she baked a turkey and made a cake "). But how do you construct such sentences in English?
How is the Past Continuous formed?
Was and Were in Past Continuous
In order to create a sentence using this tense, it is necessary to use the second form of the verb “to be”, that is - was(if we are talking about the singular) or – were(if there are several subjects of conversation). In addition, the verb used in speech takes on the ending “ing”
The proposal itself, depending on its form, will be structured as follows:
- Affirmative: singular (I/ he/ she/ it) + was…;
plural (we/ you/ they) + were…
- Negative: (I/he/she/it) + was not (wasn’t)…;
(we/you/they) + were not (weren’t)…
- Interrogative: was I/he/she/it… ?
were we/you/they… ?
In negative sentences, both the full form was not and were not and the short form can be used. The second, by the way, is more common, while the full one is used extremely rarely, mainly in official speech.
When to use Past Continuous
There are three main cases when in the process of narration one should turn to this particular time.
- If the described continuous action occurred over some unknown period of time, at some point in the past. That is, there is no clear data on how many minutes or hours the action lasted, but the very fact of its duration is important for the further course of the conversation.
I was walking at 18:00 yesterday.
- If it lasted while some other action occurred. That is, one of the events described was already ongoing at a certain moment, but suddenly another event began, inextricably linked with the first.
When Jenny came home, Kate was sleeping.
- If several actions in the past occurred during the same period of time. It is not known whether they began at the same time, or whether the second connected at some point to the first. The fact is that both of them are equal and have the same meaning in a conversation.
While Tony was cooking, Ann was reading a book.
What is noteworthy is that in the latter case the words while or when are always used, which will be discussed in more detail below.
But there is another type of situation when you have to resort to the Past Continuous. These are discussions about plans for the future that took place in the past.
In order to say, for example, that Amy was planning how she would be reading a book on the beach.
The beginning of the sentence is a familiar construction, composed according to the rules of the Past Continuous, while its second part begins with the words “would be” (in the negative form – wouldn’t be), followed by a verb with the ending “ing”.
Thus, combining within one sentence, two tenses are able to recreate the picture in its entirety, taking into account all the nuances.
What is the difference between Past Continuous and Past Simple
In order to operate with the proper ease with verb forms, building a competent sentence, you need to have a clear understanding of in what cases this or that tense is used.
- Past Simple is distinguished primarily by the completeness of thought.
- Past Continuous emphasizes the duration of the action.
That is, if you need to notify a fact, make the listener aware, Simple is used, and when you need to tell more about an event, then Continuous is used. Here, for example, is the sentence: “Mary did her homework yesterday.” And - another, similar at first glance: “Mary did her homework yesterday.”
But the first must be framed in the Past Simple, and the second in the Past Continuous, due to the indicated duration of the action: “Mary was doing her homework yesterday.”
While and When in the Past Continuous
It happens that you need to talk about two actions occurring in the past in parallel, that is, during one period of time common to them. To talk about an event that was unfolding while another event was happening, you should use the words “while” or “when.” What is the difference between them?
When the form of conversation is formal and does not allow colloquial sentences, use while. If we are talking about a friendly conversation, colloquial when would be more appropriate.
For example: “Kate was singing, when I was eating my breakfast.”
The when form is simpler, unobtrusive and ideal for conversations in informal settings, but is absolutely not suitable for formal conversations. When communicating with native speakers, you need to carefully monitor this! Inappropriate use of words that are inappropriate in their form can cause misunderstandings and conflicts, which, by the way, could easily be avoided.
Thus, knowing the rules for using time, as well as the signs of situations that should be described using it, you can significantly improve your level.
The main thing is not to neglect studying the most important rules and do not be lazy to apply the acquired information in practice, because it is precisely this that helps to bring the application of knowledge to automation, which, in fact, is the essence of free communication.
Forms Past Continuous (Past Progressive) are formed with the help to be in the shape of ( was, were) and the present participle of the semantic verb: I was smiling. When adding endings to verbs - ing sometimes there are changes in their spelling, for example have/hav ing. More about .
Abbreviated forms:
wasn't= was not
weren't= were not
Using the Past Continuous
1. A continuous action that began before a certain moment in the past and is still happening at that moment. The moment can be indicated by time notation ( at that moment – at this moment, at that time – at this time, at 3 o’clock – at 3 o’clock, at midnight – at midnight) or subordinate clauses with a predicate verb in the Past Simple.
Examples: I was writing a letter. - I was writing a letter. (I still continued to write the letter)
At 10 o'clock last night I was watching TV. – Yesterday evening at 10 o’clock I was watching TV.
I was looking at myself in the mirror when she came in. “I was looking at myself in the mirror when she came in.”
2. A long action that was performed in the elapsed period of time, although it could be interrupted during this entire period of time.
Examples: I was reading a magazine during 2 hours. – I read the newspaper for 2 hours.
Note.Pay attention to the peculiarities of using Past Continuous (Past Progressive) and Past Simple.
3. Past Continuous (Past Progressive), like Past Simple, is used with the following time markings ( all day yesterday - all day yesterday, all day long - all day, all the time - all the time, the whole evening - all evening, from two till three - from two to three).
4. If we are talking about a long-term action (about a process), the Past Continuous (Past Progressive) form is used, and if the author states the fact of an action, the Past Simple form is used.
5. When two continuous actions are performed simultaneously, they are both expressed using either the Past Continuous (Past Progressive) or the Past Simple. If the speaker wants to emphasize the action as a process, the Past Continuous (Past Progressive) is used, and if he states a fact, the Past Simple is used.
Examples: While you were sleeping, I was playing tennis.– While you were sleeping, I was playing tennis. (process)
While you slept, I played tennis.– While you were sleeping, I was playing tennis. (fact)
Rules for using Past Continuous (Past Progressive Tense, or past long time) seem quite complicated to many. Actually this is not true. Today's lesson will help you understand once and for all in which cases we use the past continuous tense in English.
The Past Continuous form is formed in almost the same way as the Present Continuous, with the only difference being that the verb to be is in the past tense form.
Education Past Progressive
Scheme Education Past Continuous looks like this:
Let's take the verb to work as an example and conjugate it into the Past Continuous:
The conjugation of any verb will look the same. The only difference is in the formation of the gerund (ing form). In some cases it will be different.
The past continuous tense describes unfinished (unfinished) actions or events in the past. It’s not entirely clear yet, so let’s take a closer look.
Use Past Continuous (Past Progressive)
1. Interrupted actions in the past
Past Continuous Tense used to show that some ongoing action in the past has been interrupted. Since interruption is comparatively short action, it is transmitted using the Past Simple form. The word “interruption” does not always mean the actual termination of an action. Sometimes this means simply the superposition of one event (action) in time on another, when a short action, expressed in the Past Simple, seems to break into a long unfinished action.
When the phone rang, I was writing a letter.- When the phone rang, I was writing a letter.
While Kate was sleeping, someone stole her car.— While Kate was sleeping, someone stole her car.
I was waiting for her when she got off the plane.— I was waiting for her (I met her) when she got off the plane.
When the fire started I was watching television.— When the fire started, I was watching TV.
In such cases, it is also possible to specify a specific time:
At six o'clock, I was working.— I was working at six o’clock.
Yesterday at 8 PM, we were eating dinner.— Yesterday at 8 o’clock in the evening we had dinner.
At midnight, we were still watching TV.— At midnight we were still watching TV.
IMPORTANT:
The Simple Past is used when specifying a specific time to show when an action began or ended, but with the Past Continuous the situation is slightly different. Let's see an example:
Last night at 6 PM, I ate dinner. (I started dinner at 6 o'clock.)
Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner. (I started dinner earlier and was in the process by 6 o'clock.)
2. Parallel events
She was reading while he was making dinner. - She read while I was preparing dinner.
What were you doing while you were waiting?- What did you do while you were waiting?
When two actions or events in the Past Continuous are indicated in one sentence, this means that these actions (events) occur simultaneously (in parallel).
3. Story in the past tense
The Past Continuous can be found in stories written in the past tense. In this case, any background events are described using this time. Let's see an example:
In the example, you will notice several situations where the Past Continuous is used. As you can see, these are events that have a certain duration (extension): the sun was shining, the birds were singing, she was looking for her child, and so on. If you decide to write your own story in English, then this lesson will help you a lot. Please note that in such cases the Past Continuous is used in conjunction with the Past Simple.
We can also say that the past continuous tense describes the so-called atmosphere that reigned in a certain place at a certain time.
4.Past habits
Past Progressive is also used when describing any habits (most often annoying) in the past. Indicators of such sentences can be words always, constantly, forever, at that time, in those days. In the Present Continuous there is also such a rule, but for the present tense.
He was constantly talking.- He talked constantly.
She was always coming to class late. — She was always late for classes.
I didn’t like his friend because he was always complaining.— I didn’t like his friend because he constantly complained.
5. Finally, we use the past continuous tense when we want to emphasize that some event or action lasted for a long time. This is often indicated by expressions such as all day, all night, for hours and so on.
We were working all day.— We worked all day.
I was preparing for the exam all evening.— I spent the whole evening preparing for the exam.
A few more specific uses of Past Progressive Tense
1. When a person changed his mind and changed plans (in the construction was/were going to):
I was going to spend the day at the beach but I’ve decided to get my homework done instead.— I wanted to spend the whole day on the beach, but I decided to do my homework instead.
2. With a verb to wonder to form polite requests:
I was wondering if you could give me your e-mail address.
While and when
When we talk about the past using when and while, when is usually followed by the Past Simple, while while is followed by the Past Continuos form, because while translates as “during the time as”, “while”, that is, it implies long process. The next two examples have absolutely identical translations, but pay attention to the use of past tense forms - they are different from each other.
He was studying when his mother called.
While he was studying, his mother called.
Remember that some verbs are not used in the continuous form. That is, instead of Past Continuous, such verbs are used in Past Simple:
I was being at my house when she came. Wrong!
I was at my house when she came. Right
Active and passive form:
Assets: The salesman was helping the customer when the thief came into the store.- The seller was helping the buyer when a thief entered the store.
Passive: The customer was being helped by the salesman when the thief came into the store.
A brief diagram of the use of Past Progressive:
These were all the rules for using the past continuous tense. Don't forget to practice using English tenses and come up with your own examples to reinforce the material.
Affirmative form Past Continuous Tense is formed using an auxiliary verb to be in the simple past tense (Simple Past/Past Indefinite - was, were) and participle I (Participle I) of the main verb (i.e. infinitive + ending -ing).
was, were + Participle I
I was working at 6 p.m. I worked at six o'clock in the evening.
We were reading. We read.
Interrogative form The Past Continuous is formed by rearranging the auxiliary verb and the subject of the affirmative form - the auxiliary verb is placed before the subject.
Was he working? He worked?
Were are you reading? Did you read?
| Was I cooking? | Were we cooking? |
| Were you cooking? | Were you cooking? |
| Was he / she / it cooking? | Were they cooking? |
In the negative form, it is possible to use abbreviated forms (only the negation not is subject to abbreviation):
I wasn't working.
We weren't reading.
Use
Past Continuous is used:
- 1. To express a continued action that occurred at a certain moment in the past. The moment of the action may be clear from the context or indicated:
a) precise indication of time: at 6 o’clock (yesterday) - (yesterday) at 6 o'clock, at that moment - at that moment, at that time - while and so on.
We were reading newspapers at 7 o’clock (yesterday). At seven o'clock (yesterday) we were reading newspapers.
At that time I was talking with my friend over the telephone. At that time I was talking to my friend on the phone.
b) to express an action that began (but did not end) before another action expressed in Simple Past/Past Indefinite, and was still continuing at the time of the action expressed in Simple Past.
They were playing when the teacher came in. They were playing when the teacher came in.
The teacher came in when they were playing. The teacher came in while they were playing.
- 2. To express excessive duration of action with expressions such as: all day long - all day, all the time - all the time, the whole day - all day, from 10 till 12 - from 10 to 12 o'clock, during - during and etc.
They were working the whole day.
They worked all day.
- 3. In descriptions - to describe the development of an action or the situation against which the event takes place.
A girl was playing the piano and (was) singing softly to herself. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. The girl stopped playing. The cat woke up…
The girl played the piano and hummed quietly. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. The girl stopped playing. The cat woke up...
- 4. With an adverb always to express a repeatedly repeated action that is already boring and annoys the speaker.
My mother was always saying not to come late. My mother always told me not to come home late.
Wasn't always ringing me up after his work. He always called me after work. (I'm sick of you.)
Compare:
Don't always rank me up after his work.
The use of Past Indefinite (Simple Past) changes the speaker’s emotional attitude to what happened, is perceived by him as ordinary, normal phenomenon, action is a fact and is translated: He always called me after work.
- 5. To express gradually developing actions, events, even if the time is not indicated (the time of development of the action is clear from the context).
It was getting dark. It was getting dark.
The wind was rising. The wind was rising.
- 6. In questions when they are interested in the time spent, the use of Past Continuous is a more polite form of question or answer than Simple Past/Past Indefinite.
What were you doing during your summer vacation?
What did you do during your summer holidays?
(This sounds more polite than “What did you do during your summer vacation?”)
Note
The Past Continuous Tense is used only to express clearly continuous, continuous action in the past. If the action was interrupted or it is said how many times it was performed, Simple Past/Past Indefinite is used.
Tom washed both cars. Tom washed both cars. (First I washed one car, then the other.)
I talked to Tom several times. I spoke to Tom several times.
But: If the actions took place in parallel, that is, at the same time, then you can also use Past Continuous Tense.
What were you doing in the afternoon? What did you do after lunch?
I was doing shopping and walking the dog. I did some shopping and walked the dog.
Past Continuous is usually translated with an imperfective verb in the past tense.
The subjunctive mood in English is a verb form that expresses the desire, assumption, doubt, or unreality of performing an action. In Russian, this is expressed by verbs in the past tense in combination with the particle “by” (so that, if, etc.).
The Past Progressive Tense, its second name The Past Continuous, denotes long-term or unfinished actions in the past. We can use this tense to describe what happened at a certain point in time in the past.
In Russian we pronounce [past continuus/progressive] – English transcription. In this article, we will introduce and study when the Past Continuous is used, as well as rules and examples of the Past Continuous.
Read the introductory text and try to retell it. Pay attention to the highlighted words.
When I arrived at the station, my boyfriend Luke was waiting for me. He was wearing a nice black suit, and he was holding red roses in his left hand. When I got off the train, he ran up to me and kissed me passionately. It was raining and thundering. I told Luke to go to a café so that we could talk, but he insisted on going to another place. While he was driving, I was listening to the radio. The weather was awful but at the same time beautiful. Luke was smiling, but he looked worried. We stopped on the top of a hill with fantastic views. He came up to me; he kneeled in front of me and took a ring out of his pocket. “Jessica, will you…” he said. “Listen, Luke I want to split up with you,” I interrupted him.
Rules of Education in Past Continuous Tense
Now we will look at how the Past Continuous is formed in English.
The past continuous tense is formed with the help of an auxiliary verb and a present participle -ing form of a semantic verb.
Past Continuous formation formula:
— For pronouns I/he/she/it was + ing form
— For pronouns you/we/they were + ing form
Example:
— My boyfriend Luke was waiting for me – My boyfriend Luke was waiting for me.
— We were listening to the radio - We listened to the radio.
Cases of using the Past Continuous
Past Continuous is a very common tense in English, you should understand it and know it well. Below are rules and example sentences in the Past Continuous that will help you quickly understand the difficulties of using the Past Continuous.
1. Past Progressive is usually used
When we talk about actions or states that lasted at a certain point in the past. This tense emphasizes that the action continued during a certain period in the past:
Example:
—Peter was reading a book at 5 pm yesterday Peter was reading a book yesterday at 5 pm. (Specific action – 5 o’clock yesterday).
— I was sleeping at 3 o’clock yesterday afternoon – I was sleeping at 3 o’clock yesterday afternoon.
— We were still discussing the plan at midnight“At midnight we were still discussing the plan.
2. The Past Continuous is often used together with
That is, one action interrupts another. Past Continuous is a long action, Past Simple is a short action.
Example:
— While I was washed the dishes bell rank– When I was washing the dishes, the bell rang. (Long action - washed the dishes; short action - the bell rang).
— I was cycling to work when I fell off the bike – I was riding my bike to work and fell off the bike. (The previous action in progress was interrupted by another action.)
— As I was washed the dog my husband called me – While I was washing the dog, my husband called me. (Washing is a long-term action, my husband called me and interrupted this action).
3. Two or more simultaneous actions in the past (two actions that happened at the same time)
Example:
—Paul was reading out the data while Sarah was writing it down – Paul read the data out loud and Sarah wrote it down.
— While Alan was smoking in his room, his friends were swimming in the pool - While Alan was smoking in his room, his friends were swimming in the pool.
—Alex was made lunch; Mary was laying the table – Alex was preparing dinner, Mary was setting the table.
4. Descriptions of events in history
We often use the Past Progressive at the beginning of a story to describe a situation.
Example:
— I was walking, the birds were singing and the kids were crying“I was walking, the birds were singing, and the children were crying.
—It was raining the wind was blowing. I was sitting next to the fireplace. Jim was playing the guitar, and the kids were dancing- It was raining. The wind was blowing. I was sitting by the fireplace. Jim played the guitar and the children danced.
—It was getting dark, and I was walking fast to the bar. Abruptly... - It was getting dark, and I quickly went to the bar. Suddenly…
5. From the lesson, we know that the adverbs constantly, always, forever are used to express irritation
In the same way, we can use the Past Continuous, only to express past repeated actions. Let's look at sentences in the past progressive with these adverbs.
Example:
— Luis was forever smoking in my room! “Louis was always smoking in my room!”
- No was constantly sleeping on duty! – He constantly slept on duty!
— She was always losing her wallet – She always lost her wallet.
6. With verbs that show change or growth
Example:
— New buildings were going up everywhere – New buildings were erected everywhere.
—My dog was growing up quickly – My dog grew up quickly.
—His Chinese was improving- His Chinese improved.
7. Past continuous tense is also used in conditional sentences
But this time is rare. Most often we see in stories or hear in dialogues.
Example:
— If Sam was playing, they would probably win – If Sam had played, they probably would have won.
— If she was trying to find a job, she could make a fortune - If she tried to find a job, she could make a fortune.
Although the Past Continuous tense is used here, Type 2 conditional sentences refer to the future or present tense.
8. Past forms are used when we talk about the present in several polite expressions
Example:
— Excuse me, I was wondering if this was the bus for Manchester – Sorry, I would like to know if this bus was to Manchester?
9. When is the past continuous used in indirect speech?
Simple, and most importantly understandable examples will easily answer this question.
Example:
— “I'm not looking forward to going back to university,” Clara said – Clara said: “I’m not going back to university.” (Direct speech).
— Clara said she was not looking forward to going back to university – Clara said that she is not going to return to university. (Indirect speech).
As can be seen from the first example, in direct speech the verb is in , and in indirect speech, we already see that the retold words are in the Past Continuous.
Based on the above, we can conclude that if a verb is in direct speech in the present continuous, then in indirect speech it will already be in the past cont.
We described in the article how all tenses change in indirect speech Direct and indirect speech.
Words - markers (time indicators) Past Continuous Tense
Auxiliary words will help you determine which tense is used in a sentence.
Each time has its own clue words. Of course, it happens that the same keyword is used with other tenses, so you need to remember not only the signal words, but also the rules of use for each of them.
While, at midday, at lunchtime, all morning, all day, when, at 5 o’clock, from 5 till 6 yesterday, the whole evening, as, during, this afternoon, at this time yesterday etc.
Examples of sentences in the past continuous with the words satellites:
— Mila was digging in the garden when she hurt her foot – Mila was digging in the garden and injured her foot.
— While I was painting the fence, Din was resting on the couch - While I was painting the fence, Dean was resting on the couch.
— I was baking cakes all day– I’ve been baking cakes all day.
— My half-brother was skiing from 10 till 7 yesterday– My stepbrother went skiing from 4 to 7 yesterday.
— Oliver was wrapping the gift at this time yesterday Oliver was packing a gift at this time yesterday.
Forms of sentences in the Past Continuous
It is always important to know how to construct sentences in English, since there is a strict sequence of words. If we violate the rules of sentence construction, then native speakers may not understand us. Therefore, we invite you to consider all three forms of the past continuous in the form of tables, which present rules and examples.
Affirmative sentences Past Continuous
The affirmative form of sentences is constructed according to the formula:
