C1 VERB FORMS TO TALK ABOUT THE PAST

C1

Verb forms to talk about the past

Teacher Estela

Tenses

1. Past simple

5. Past perfect simple

2. Past continuous

6. Past perfect continuous

3. Present perfect simple

7. Would and used to

4. Present perfect continuous

Past simple

JUMPEDDIDN'T GOWAS

WHEN TO USE IT

Actions that happened one after the other

Habitual action over a specific period in the past

Action that happened at a specific time in the past

Action that lasted some time in the past but is now finished

She opened the fridge, took out the milk, gave some to the cat and put some in her coffee.

While he was away, he rang his girlfriend every day.

Yesterday I felt so tired that I didn't go to work.

I studied in Paris for four years, from 2005 to 2009.

Past continuous

was reading were cleaning was studying

WHEN TO USE IT

Something that frequently happened, with always or forever

A situation that was temporary in the past

Action that started before and continued until an event in the past

Action that started before and continued after an event in the past

I remember that summer well. I was staying with my aunt while my parents were away.

My dad was always dressing up in funny hats.

I was cooking lunch when I heard the news.

She was driving home when the police stopped her.

Present perfect tenses

have started have been driving has finished has been singing

WHEN TO USE THEM

With "for" or "since" to describe a past activity that continues in the present

With time adverbs that connect the past to the present

Describe an action that happened at an unspecified time in the past up to now

Past action with emphasis on the result in the present

Someone has stolen my phone!

Have you seen any good films lately?

They've known each other since they were children

They've recorded a lot of albums.

versus

Present perfect simple

Present perfect continuous

Emphasises the activity Activity has been continued for a period of time and may be still continuing Says how long an activity has been happening May indicate a temporary situation

Emphasises the result Often describes an action that is now completed Says how much has been completed or how often something has been done May indicate a more permanent situation

vs

Past perfect simple

had drunk had arrived had watched

WHEN IS IT USED

With time expressions like "when", "as soon as", "before", "after", "it was the first time"...

Indicate that we are talking about an action that happened before another activity in the past

He went home as soon as he'd finished his work.

When María got home, they had eaten dinner.

Past perfect continuous

had been dancing had been watching had been cleaning

WHEN IS IT USED

To say how long something happened up to a point in the past

To focus on the length of time

My eyes were really tired because I had been reading for two or three hours in bad light.

It was two months before any of the teachers noticed that James hadn't been coming to school.

Would and used to

They are used to talk about things that happened repeatedly in the past but don't happen now. When I was small, my mother would read to me in bed and she'd sing me a song to help me sleep. While she was reading to me, my father used to wash up the dinner things.

BE CAREFUL!

To specify how many times or how often, we use the past simple.

"Used to" only exists in the past. The negative is "didn't use to".

We "used to" not "would" to talk about past states that no longer exist.

Charlie used to be very good at tennis. He won the championship three times.

He didn't use to be so mean.

There used to be a train station here (not "would").

Good luck!

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