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The use of the Past Simple

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The use of the Past Simple

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The simple past or past simple, sometimes called the preterite, is the basic form of the past tense in Modern English. It is used principally to describe events in the past, although it also has some other uses. Regular English verbs form the simple past in -ed; however there are a few hundred irregular verbs with different forms.

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Carlos Alberto Sierra Arenas
Carlos Alberto Sierra Arenas
Colombia

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The use of the Past Simple
 

The use of the Past SimpleOnline version

The simple past or past simple, sometimes called the preterite, is the basic form of the past tense in Modern English. It is used principally to describe events in the past, although it also has some other uses. Regular English verbs form the simple past in -ed; however there are a few hundred irregular verbs with different forms.

by Carlos Alberto Sierra Arenas
1

Talking about past actions and events

<p>Regular verbs form the simple past in <i>-ed</i>; however there are a few hundred <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_irregular_verbs" title="List of English irregular verbs">irregular verbs</a> with different forms. For details see <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_verbs#Past_tense" title="English verbs">English verbs: Past tense</a>.</p> <p>Most verbs have a single form of the simple past, independent of the <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammatical_person" title="Grammatical person">person</a> or <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammatical_number" title="Grammatical number">number</a> of the subject (there is no addition of <i>-s</i> for the third person singular as in the <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simple_present" title="Simple present">simple present</a>). However the <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copula_verb" title="Copula verb" class="mw-redirect">copula verb</a> <i>be</i> has two past tense forms: <i>was</i> for the first and third persons singular, and <i>were</i> in other instances. The form <i>were</i> can also be used in place of <i>was</i> in conditional clauses and the like; for information on this, see <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_subjunctive" title="English subjunctive">English subjunctive</a>. This is the only case in modern English where a distinction in form is made between the <a target="_blank" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indicative_mood" title="Indicative mood" class="mw-redirect">indicative</a> and subjunctive moods in the past tense.</p>

Regular verbs form the simple past in -ed; however there are a few hundred irregular verbs with different forms. For details see English verbs: Past tense.

Most verbs have a single form of the simple past, independent of the person or number of the subject (there is no addition of -s for the third person singular as in the simple present). However the copula verb be has two past tense forms: was for the first and third persons singular, and were in other instances. The form were can also be used in place of was in conditional clauses and the like; for information on this, see English subjunctive. This is the only case in modern English where a distinction in form is made between the indicative and subjunctive moods in the past tense.

2

Some examples:

™    I saw a movie yesterday.

™    I didn't see a play yesterday.

™    Last year, I traveled to Japan.

™    Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.

™    Did you have dinner last night?

™    She washed her car.

™    He didn't wash his car.

3

Other cases in which to use The Past Simple

We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.

Examples: I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.
He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs?
4

Or...

™ ™The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used to." To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.

5

Examples:

™    I studied French when I was a child.

™    He played the violin.

™    He didn't play the piano.

™    Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid?

™    She worked at the movie theater after school.

™    They never went to school, they always skipped class.