Past continuous
1. Introduction
Progressive tenses always happen over time, so past progressive tense means that the action happened over a period of time in the past. In this respect, the past continuous tense describes past events which went on for a particular period or moment of time. We use it when we want to emphasize the continuing process of the activity, event, and action or the period of that action. The action started before that moment but has not finished at that moment.
3. 2. 1. A Form
The past continuous tense is formed by the past tense of the helping verb “to be” + the present participle of the main verb.
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Subject + (was / were ) + stem of the main verb + ing |
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Affirmative |
Negative |
Interrogative |
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I was working You were working He/she/it was working We were working You were working They were working |
I was not working You were not working He/she/it was not working We were not working You were not working They were not working |
Was I working? Were you working? Was he/she/it working? Were we working? Were you working? Were they working? |
2. The Spelling of the Present Participle
§ When a verb ends in a single “silent” “es”, this “e” is dropped before “ing”. See the example words below:
· Argue arguing
· Hate hating
§ Except after “age, dye, and sing” = ageing, dyeing, singeing
· And verbs ending in “ee” like “see, agree” = seeing, agreeing
§ However, when a verb ends in an “e” which is not silent, the final “e” is not dropped before the ending “ing” is added.
· To be being
· To see seeing
§ When a verb ends is “ie”, the “ie” is changed to “y” before the ending “ing” is added.
§ When a verb of one syllable has no vowel and ends in a single consonants, this consonant is doubled before “ing”
· Run running
· Stop stopping
§ Verbs of two or more syllables whose last syllable contains only one vowel and ends in a single consonant in case the stress falls on the last syllable: this consonant is doubled before “ing”.
· Admit admitting
· Begin beginning
§ But if stress does not fall on the last syllable, the last consonant is not doubled:
· Budget budgeting
· Enter entering
§ Final “L” after a single vowel is, however, always doubled “except in American English”:
· Signal signaling
· Travel travelling
§ “Ing” can be added to a verb ending in “Y” without affecting the spelling of the verb:
· Carry carrying
· Enjoy enjoying
1. 2. 2. Main Uses of the Past Continuous Tense
§ It is used with a point in time “the time is known and important”, it expresses an action which began before that time and probably continued after it in the past. So to speak, when we want to say that something was in progress “going on” around a particular past time or point of time in the past. This kind of actions can be represented diagrammatically as follows:
See the examples below:
· At 8 pm yesterday, I was watching TV.
· I was working at 10 pm yesterday.
· The teacher was explaining the lesson at 0 o'clock.
§ It is used chiefly for past actions which continued for some time but whose exact limits are not known and are not important. It might be expressed diagrammatically “……….the action …………..” Indicates uncertainty about times of starting or finishing. See the examples below:
· It was getting darker.
· I was eating my breakfast.
· He was watching his favorite show.
· The system was weakening from time to time.
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John was eating with Mary. |
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· Past |
· Present |
· Future |
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………+ + + eating + + +………….. - - - - - - - - - - - - |
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The action of eating did exist in the past but do not know when the action of eating started and finished in the past. |
No presence of the action in the present |
No presence of the action in the future |
§ The past continuous tense is used with the simple past tense for an interrupted action in the past. We use the past continuous tense to refer to a longer “background” action or situation; the simple past refers to a shorter action or event that happened in the middle of the longer action, or that interrupted it. We can join the two ideas with when or while. So the continuous action is the interrupted one while the simple past action is the interrupting second action. This kind of actions can be represented diagrammatically as follows:
See the examples below:
· I was watching TV at 8 pm when you telephoned me.
· The teacher was explaining the lesson when the headmaster knocked on the door.
· As I was walking down the road, I saw Bill.
· The Algerian battle took place when All Algerians were fighting the French colonization.
§ The past continuous is used for two parallel actions in the past. 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. This kind of actions can be represented diagrammatically as follows:
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Examples:
· I was studying while he was watching television.
· While Tina was making dinner, John was fixing the sink.
· Were you listening while he was talking?
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Important Reminder: § We can join these two actions with when: · I was watching TV when you telephoned. § Notice that "when you telephoned" is also a way of defining the time [8pm]. We use: Ø While is used with two continuous and simultaneous actions. We usually use while when we have two continuous actions taking place at the same time. when + short action (simple past tense) Ø When is used with two single and simultaneous or close together actions. We usually use when for single actions that happen almost simultaneously or very close together (one after the other).while + long action (past continuous tense) Consequently, there are four basic combinations.
§ Notice that the long action and short action are relative. · "Watching TV" took a few hours. "Telephoned" took a few seconds. · "Walking past the car" took a few seconds. "Exploded" took a few milliseconds. |
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Important Note: Verbs which are not normally used in the continuous tenses. The continuous tenses “past continuous” are chiefly used for deliberate actions. So some verbs are, therefore, not normally used in the continuous and have only the simple past tense, the simple form. These verbs can be grouped as follows: § Verbs of the senses (involuntary actions): feel, hear, see, smell, notice, observe § Verbs expressing feelings and emotions; admire, adore, appreciate, desire, detest, dislike, fear, hate, like, loathe, love, mind, respect, value, want, whish, § Verbs of mental activity; agree, assume, believe, expect, forget, know, understand, mean, perceive, realize, recognize, remember, suppose … § Verbs of possession; belong, owe, possess… § The auxiliaries; except “be” and “have” in certain uses.
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3. 3. Simple Past and Past Continues Tenses Differences
1. Past continuums tense can be used as an alternative to the simple past tense to indicate a more casual, less deliberate action:
· I was talking to Tom the other day. (The past continuous here gives the impression that the action was in no way unusual or remarkable. It also tends to remove responsibility from the subject. In the above example it is not clear who started the conversation, and it does not matter. Note the contradiction with the simple past tense; I talked to Tom, which indicates that the subject took the initiative.
· From four to six Tom was washing the car. (This would indicate that this was casual, possibly routine action. Compare with:
· From four to six Tom washed the car. (This would imply more a deliberate action by Tom.)
Summary
The past progressive tense is used for an activity that was in progress over time or at a specified point in the past. It is formed by using “was,” or “were” with the present participle of the base verb. The common way of using the simple present tense is when:
§ Action in progress at a particular time:
§ Background action (I was sleeping when he arrived).
§ Simultaneous action (I was trying to hear what the man was saying. Mary was waking up while Ann was cleaning).
§ Temporary action (may be regular) (We were sleeping in the kitchen during that cold winter. I was living with my parents waiting for my apartment to be redecorated.).
§ Changes, trends, developments and progress (I thought she looked thinner. Apparently, she was slimming. The weather was getting worse.).
§ To express an incomplete action (He was reading a book that night. – as opposed to a complete action – He read a book that night.).
Exercise 1
Fill in the blank spaces in the following sentences with either the simple or the progressive form of the past tense of the verb given at the end of each (whichever you think is appropriate).
1. He………...the room and ……......down in the chair. (cross, sit)
2. When we set out early this morning the un................(shine)
3. As he……………....the road a bus...............him down. (cross, knock)
4. The passenger in the next seat to me……………...a newspaper. (read)
5. He……....and………….his leg as he was alighting from a bus. (slip, injure)
6. My grandfather was seventy-five years old when he……………..(die)
7. When the doctor arrived he realized that the patient …………....(die)
8. The sound of their conversation.............the baby. (waken)
9. We were told that the manager could not see us at that moment, a he………...some letters to his secretary. (dictate)
10. When he took off his hat I noticed that his hairs……………..grey. (go)
11. My husband…………...quite a lot of money for that picture. (pay)
12. At one time it ……...several weeks to get from Britain to America by sea. (take)
13. A schoolboy…………...a purse full of money lying in the gutter. (find)
14. We……………....someone opening the gate. (hear)
15. When we……………..he……………...the lawn. (arrive, mow)
Exercise 2
Complete the sentences with the words in parentheses using the Simple Past or the Past Progressive with justification:
1. Sally …..1… (eat) dinner last night when someone …2….. (knock) on the door.
2. I began to study at seven last night. Fred …………1………… (come) at seven- thirty. I ……2………… (study) when Fred …………3…………….. (come).
3. While I ……1……. (study) last night, Fred ……2……… (drop by) to visit me.
4. My roommate’s parents …………1………………. (call) him last night while we ……………………2……………….. (watch) TV.
5. My mother called me around five. My husband came home a little after five. When he …1….. (come) home, I ……2….. (talk) to my mother on the phone.
6. Yesterday Tom and Janice ………1………… (go) to the zoo around one. They ………2…… (see) many kinds of animals. They stayed at the zoo for two hours. While they ………3……… (walk) home, it ….4…….. (begin) to rain, so they ………5……….. (stop) at a small café and ……6…… (have) a cup of coffee.
7. Yesterday afternoon I ………1……… (go) to visit the Parker family. When I ……2….. (get) there around two o’clock, Mrs. Parker ……3….. (be) in the yard. She ……4…… (plant) flowers in her garden. Mr. Parker ……5….. (be) in the garage. He ……6….. (work) on their car. He ………7….. (change) the oil.
Exercise 3
Put the verb in the correct form: past simple or past continuous.
1. I ………… (dream) when the alarm clock …………. (go off).
2. They …………. (wait) for me when I…………. (arrive).
3. The phone ………… (ring) while I …………… (have) a shower.
4. We ………… (not/go out) last Sunday because it ……….. (rain).
5. I ………… (see) Kim at the party. She ……….. (wear) a new dress.
6. I ……….. (break) a bowl this morning. When I ………..(wash) the dishes it just ………. (slip) out of my hand onto the floor!
7. When he ……. (carry) the table, he ……….. (feel) a sharp pain in his back.
8. Sarah ……… (go) down the stairs when the lights ……… (go out).
9. We …….. (watch) TV when someone…….. (come) to the door and ……….. (knock) very loudly.
10. What ………… (you/do) at this time yesterday? Oh, I …… (prepare) the dinner.
11. I …………. (fall) asleep while I ………… (watch) television.
12. At 12:45 yesterday, Mr. Alright………… (see) a client in his office.