simple past and past progessive

Simple Past – Past Progressive

Form

Simple Past	Past Progressive
irregular verbs: see 2nd column of irregular verbs I spoke regular verbs: verb + ed I worked	past form of 'be' + ing form of verb   I was speaking you were speaking he / she / it was speaking we were speaking they were speaking
Exceptions
Exceptions when adding 'ed' : §    when the final letter is e, only add d. Example: love - loved §    after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled Example: admit - admitted §    final l is always doubled in British English (not in American English) Example: travel - travelled §    after a consonant, final y becomes i. (but: not after a vowel) Example: worry - he worried but: play - he played	Exceptions when adding 'ing' : §    silent e is dropped (but: does not apply for -ee) Example: come - coming but: agree - agreeing §    after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled Example: sit - sitting §    final l is always doubled in British English (not in American English) Example: travel - travelling §    final ie becomes y. Example: lie - lying

See also explanations on Simple Past and Past Progressive

Use

After another or at the same time?

Do you want to express that the actions in the past happened one after another or at the same time?

Simple Past	Past Progressive
after another She came home, switched on the computer and checked her e-mails.	at the same time Simon was playing on the computer while his brother was watchin TV.

New action or already in progress?

If you want to express that a new action happened in the middle of another action, you need both tenses: Simple Past the new action and Past Progressive for the action already in progress.

Simple Past	Past Progressive
new action My mobile rang (when I was sitting in a meeting.)	action already in progress While I was sitting in a meeting, (my mobile suddenly rang.)

Only mentioning or emphasising progress?

Do you just want to mention that an action took place in the past (also used for short actions)? Or do you want to put emphasis on the progress, e.g. that an action was taking place at a certain time?

Simple Past	Past Progressive
just mentioning Colin played football yesterday.	emphasising progress Yesterday at six o'clock, Colin was playing football.

Certain Verbs

The following verbs are usually only used in Simple Past (not in the progressive form).

§    state: be, cost, fit, mean, suit

Example: We were on holiday.

§    possession: belong, have

Example: Sam had a cat.

§    senses: feel, hear, see, smell, taste, touch

Example: He felt the cold.

§    feelings: hate, hope, like, love, prefer, regret, want, wish

Example: Jane loved pizza.

§    brain work: believe, know, think, understand

Example: I did not understand him.

§    introductory clauses for direct speech: answer, ask, reply, say

Example: “I am watching TV,“ he said.

Signal words

Simple Past	Past Progressive
§    first §    then §    If-Satz Typ II (If I talked, …)	§    when §    while §    as long as

simple future tense

I will sing

The simple future tense is often called will, because we make the simple future tense with the modal auxiliary will.

How do we make the Simple Future Tense?

The structure of the simple future tense is:

subject	+	auxiliary verb WILL	+	main verb
		invariable		base
		will		V1

For negative sentences in the simple future tense, we insert not between the auxiliary verb and main verb. For question sentences, we exchange the subject and auxiliary verb. Look at these example sentences with the simple future tense:

	subject	auxiliary verb		main verb
+	I	will		open	the door.
+	You	will		finish	before me.
-	She	will	not	be	at school tomorrow.
-	We	will	not	leave	yet.
?	Will	you		arrive	on time?
?	Will	they		want	dinner?

When we use the simple future tense in speaking, we often contract the subject and auxiliary verb:

I will	I'll
you will	you'll
he will she will it will	he'll she'll it'll
we will	we'll
they will	they'll

For negative sentences in the simple future tense, we contract with won't, like this:

I will not	I won't
you will not	you won't
he will not she will not it will not	he won't she won't it won't
we will not	we won't
they will not	they won't

How do we use the Simple Future Tense?

No Plan

We use the simple future tense when there is no plan or decision to do something before we speak. We make the decision spontaneously at the time of speaking. Look at these examples:

·     Hold on. I'll get a pen.

·     We will see what we can do to help you.

·     Maybe we'll stay in and watch television tonight.

In these examples, we had no firm plan before speaking. The decision is made at the time of speaking.

We often use the simple future tense with the verb to think before it:

·     I think I'll go to the gym tomorrow.

·     I think I will have a holiday next year.

·     I don't think I'll buy that car.

Prediction

We often use the simple future tense to make a prediction about the future. Again, there is no firm plan. We are saying what we think will happen. Here are some examples:

·     It will rain tomorrow.

·     People won't go to Jupiter before the 22nd century.

·     Who do you think will get the job?

Be

When the main verb is be, we can use the simple future tense even if we have a firm plan or decision before speaking. Examples:

·     I'll be in London tomorrow.

·     I'm going shopping. I won't be very long.

·     Will you be at work tomorrow?