Past Tenses in English

Past

Jéssica Leal

Sonia LatifSonia Latif

Revised & Completed by Nur Garriga

Revised & Completed by Nur Garriga

Past Simple

Actions /events which started in the past

and finished in the past

E.g.: He finished his homework

Things which happened repeatedly in the past

E.g.: She went to France every summer.

E.g.: She used to go to France every summer.

Past states

E.g.: It rained yesterday.

E.g. I was very ill when I was 9, now I’m healthy though.

Past Continuous

Actions in progress at a certain

moment in the past

E.g.: I was watching TV at 7pm.

A past action interrupted by another

E.g.: He was kissing her, when her father arrived!

While he was kissing her, her father arrived!

Past Perfect Simple

Actions/situations which happened before other past actions in the past

E.g.: When I arrived at 5pm, they had (already) eaten everything .

Actions or situations which happened before a specific moment in the pastE.g.: By the time he was 12, he had travelled around the world.

With the expressions “It WAS the first, second, third time…/ BEFORE”

E.g.: It was the first time that he had seen Sagrada Familia. He hadn’t been to Sagrada Família before.

Past Perfect Continuous

A finished action or situation which happened

before another which is also finished.

E.g.: He had been waiting there for more than

two hours, when she finally arrived.

USED TO

Something that happened regularly in

the past but no longer exists in the

present

E.g.: I used to smoke (infinitive), but I

stopped last year. Well done!!!! ;-)

Add Your Text

BE USED TO (present or past) + (Vb+ing)

Add Your Text

Present Routine

E.g.: We are used to going to the gym. / We usually go to

the gym.

Past Routine: People who were accustomed to doing

something in the past, because it was usual, but now they

don’t do it anymore.

E.g.: They were used to walking everywhere. I was used to going to the gym at that time.

Future Routine: I’ll be used to getting up at 6am.

GET (present) GOT (past) USED TO + (Vb+ing)

PRESENT: People who are getting accustomed to

something OR to doing something.

E.g. You are getting used to travelling abroad.

PAST: People who had become accustomed to something

OR to doing something.

E.g.: They got used to being famous.

People who were getting accustomed to something OR to

doing something.

E.g.: We were getting used to speaking English in

class.

C’est fini!!!