Bob is eighty. Hes old and weak. Mary, his wife is seventy-nine. Shes old, too.

Bob is eighty. He’s old and weak.

Mary, his wife is seventy-nine. She’s old, too.

Fifty years ago they were young. Bob was strong.

He wasn’t weak. Mary was beautiful. She wasn’t

old.

The past simple of the verb “to be” is was & were.

I

He

She

It

waswas

We

You

They

werewere

• We form questions by putting was/were before

the subject pronoun.

She was ill yesterday.Was she ill yesterday?

• We form negations by putting not after was/were.

She wasn’t ill yesterday.

She was not ill yesterday.

( + )( ? )

• We use the past simple for actions whichfinished at a definite stated time in the past.

That is, we know when the action happened.

They were in Berlin last month.

(When? Last month)

He was in hospital twoweeks ago.

(When? Two weeks ago)

square

John

John was at the square.

castle

Mary and Peter

Mary and Peter were at the castle.

palace

Jill

Jill was at the palace.

souvenir shop

George and Mary

George and Mary were at the souvenir shop.

museum

Nina and Rhonda

Nina and Rhonda were at the museum.

1. Were there CDs 100 years ago?No, there weren’t.

2. Were there boats 100 years ago?Yes, there were.

3. Were there helicopters 100 years ago?No, there weren’t.

4. Were there bowls 100 years ago?Yes, there were.

5. Were there videos 100 years ago?No, there weren’t.

6. Were there irons 100 years ago?

No, there weren’t.

7. Were there washing machines 100 years ago?No, there weren’t.

8. Were there motorcycles 100 years ago?

No, there weren’t.

9. Were there cookers 100 years ago?

No, there weren’t.

10. Were there TVs 100 years ago?No, there weren’t.

11. Were there bicycles 100 years ago?Yes, there were.

12. Were there glasses 100 years ago?Yes, there were.

Where / Lyn / last Tuesday / ?

Where was Lyn last Tuesday?

She was at the supermarket.

Where / children / yesterday afternoon / ?

Where were the children yesterday afternoon?

They were at the playground.

Where / John / last night / ?

Where was John last night?

He was at the cinema.

Where / Kevin and Sally / two days ago / ?

Where were Kevin and Sally two days ago?

They were at the museum.

Where / you and your friends / last Saturday / ?

Where were you and your friends last Saturday?

We were at a restaurant.

Where / Diane / yesterday / at noon?

Where was Diane yesterday at noon?

She was at a train station.

Lisa / actress

Lisa wasn’t an actress ten years ago.

She was a singer.

Betty and Tom / poor

Betty and Tom weren’t poor ten years ago.

They were rich.

Bob / fat

Bob wasn’t fat ten years ago.

He was thin.

Tina and Allison / doctors

Tina and Allison weren’t doctors ten years ago.

They were students.

Ted / in Italy

Ted wasn’t in Italy ten years ago.

He was in Spain.