English Past Simple Lesson

English

Past Simple

A class by Joe

When do we use the past simple?

To talk about: 1. Something that happened once in the past: Example: 'We went to Spain on holiday.' 2. Something that happened several times in the past: Example: 'When I was a child, I walked to school every day.' 3. something that was true for some time in the past: Example: 'I lived in the USA for a year.' 4. we often use expressions with 'ago' with the past simple: Example: 'I met my wife a long time ago.'

How do we use the past simple?

Regular Verbs

For regular verbs, we add -ed. Word examples: play – played, watch – watched, want – wanted Sentence examples: 'I played video games last night.' 'She watched the football match yesterday.'

Sentence Examples

How do we use the past simple?

I went to the cinema yesterday.

Irregular Verbs

Regular verbs are easy but there are lots of irregular verbs in English. Here are the most common irregular verbs with their past tense forms:

He had toast for breakfast this morning.

Click on the button for a a list you can save and print (there are 2 pages).

She slept very well last night.

What are the original forms of the verbs used in the sentences?

Negative Sentences

When we use the negative, we don’t change the main verb. We use ‘didn’t’ or 'did not' instead. I didn’t watch TV yesterday. I did not watch TV yesterday. They didn’t go to school last week. They did not go to school last week.

The concert was amazing!

The Verb 'be'

'Be' is a special verb and we use 'was' or 'were' for the past simple, depending on who you are talking about.

Remember! I was You were She was He was It was We were They were

You were late for school this morning.

Negative

Negative Form

The concert wasn't amazing. The concert was not amazing. You weren’t late for school this morning. You were not late for school this morning.

Be careful! For negatives add 'n't' or ‘not’.

Now click on the buttons below to practice. Read the rules and examples and enjoy the games!

That was easy, right? Now try something a lttle more difficult!

Read the rules and examples and click on the 'questions' tabs to do the activities.

Extra activities

If you want to practice more, click on the buttons for extra activities and games.

Well Done!

Great Job!