PAST TENSES

Verb tenses: Past simple & Past perfect

01 Past Simple

Definition

It's used for past actions that have been done already. So we need them to talk about past, when actions are finished and they don't relate to the present anymore.

1. I dropped my bubble gum ice cream last weekend.

02 Past Perfect

Definition

It's a complicated verb tense, because it depends of another past action to take place. We often use it before a simple past action.

2. They had fallen asleep when her mother came home.

03 Structure of Past Simple and Perfect

You don't need to memorize them, just inderstand.

• Past Simple

Affirmative: I drank water.Negative: I didn't drink water.Question: Did I drink water?

• Past Perfect

Affirmative: I had drunk water.Negative: I hadn't drunk water.Question: Had I drunk water?

Past Perfect

Past Simple

VS

It is independent from the past perfect.

It completely depends of the simple past.

It's used to talk about past actions already made.

Used to talk about actions made before a past action.

We work with past participle verbs.

We work with past verbs.

We are helped by the auxiliary "did".

We are helped by the auxiliary "had".

Past Continous (progressive)

Combining past tenses

04 What is past continuous?

Concept:

It's a past tense often used in story telling, it usually leads to other actions or consequences in the past. It can also be used to explain routines or habits in past.

3. They were preparing luch as the father arrived.

Past Perfect

Past Continous

VS

It is usually accompanied by a simple past action, but it doesn't depend on it at all.

It completely depends of the simple past.

Used to talk about actions made before a past action.

It's used to talk about actions that continued before and after a past action (a period of time).

We work with past participle verbs.

We work with was/were + an -ing verb.

We are helped by the auxiliary "had".

We are helped by the auxiliary "be" in past form.

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