When we use the past continuous. Past Continuous - past continuous tense. Negative Past Continuous Tense

In English, the Past Continuous Tense (past continuous tense) is a combination of the English tense (present continuous). Past Continuous (Progressive) has similar features to, only with a projection onto the past.

Past Continuous. Examples:

I was listening to a new song yesterday at 10 a.m. Yesterday at 10 am I was listening to a new song.

? Was she having dinner when I came back home? Was she having dinner when I got home?

- No was not preparing for his examination while she was writing an essay. He wasn't studying for the exam when she wrote the essay.

Marker words for Past Continuous

(read more about marker words in the article

):

when (when), while (while), at 5 o'clock (at five o'clock), at noon (at noon), at midnight (at midnight), at that moment (at that moment), all day long (all day), all day yesterday (all day yesterday), all the time (all the time), the whole evening (all evening), from six till seven (from six to seven)

THE PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE
(THE PAST PROGRESSIVE)

Past continuous tense

Past Continuous affirmative form
+

Question form Past Continuous
?

Wh-?
Special questions in the Past Continuous

(start with special words)

Negative form
Past Continuous
—

Interrogative-negative form
Past Continuous
(Speaking)
?-

Schematically the structure of the sentence in Past Continuous can be shown like this:

+
S + was/were Ving

?
Was/were + S + Ving?

Wh - ?
Wh + was/were + S + Ving?

–
S + wasn’t/weren’t +Ving

? –
Wasn’t/weren’t + S + Ving?

Using the Past Continuous

English time Past Continuous used:

1. To indicate long-acting in the past that occurred at some point or period of time in the past.

e.g. This time yesterday we were lying on the beach. Yesterday at the same time we were lying on the beach.

This is a long lasting action in the past. may be interrupted by another past action, expressed by a verb in Past Indefinite.

—We were studying at the library when the teacher came. We were studying in the library when the teacher came.

— While we were sleeping,he stole our suitcase.

2. To express parallel actions that occurred simultaneously in the past and depict the action as a process rather than as a fact.

— While Kate was reading Mike was watching a cartoon. While Katya was reading, Mike was watching a cartoon.

The Past Continuous Tense (Past continuous tense) expresses a continuous unfinished action:

a) committed at a certain moment in the past, which in a sentence can be indicated either by an exact indication of a point in time ( at ... o"clock, at that moment, etc), or another single action expressed by a verb in PastSimple:

We were going to the Institute at 4 o"clock.
We went to the institute at 4 o'clock.

We were discussing this question when the bell rank.
We were discussing this issue when the bell rang.

b) occurring simultaneously with another ongoing action:

My friend was putting down the new words while I was writing the exercise.
My friend wrote down new words while I wrote the exercise.

Past Continuous also called Past Progressive, and in Russian they are also called past continuous tense.

Formula: was/ were Ving

Past Continuous translated by an imperfective verb in the past tense.

Affirmative sentences in Past Continuous (Affirmative sentences)

Examples - Examples

She called me when I was driving a car.
She called me while I was driving.
She called me while I was driving.

She came home when I was playing computer games.
She came home while I was playing computer games.
She came home while I was playing computer games.

I was talking to her yesterday at 3 o"clock.
I was talking to her yesterday at 3 o'clock.
I talked to her yesterday at 3 o'clock.

Negative sentences in Past Continuous (Negative sentences)

Examples - Examples

When she called me, I wasn't doing my homework.
When she called me, I wasn't doing my homework.
When she called me, I wasn't doing my homework.

When she saw me, I wasn't talking to my teacher.
When she saw me, I was not talking to my teacher.
When she saw me, I didn't talk to my teacher.

Interrogative sentences in the Past Continuous (Interrogative sentences)

Examples - Examples

Were you playing computer games when she came home?
Were you playing computer games when she came home?
Were you playing computer games when she came home?

Past Progressive (Past Continuous) can be translated as “past continuous tense.” It is one of the most commonly used grammatical tenses in the English language. Once you master it, you will be able to express your thoughts more freely.

Affirmative sentence structure

In the Past Progressive, sentences are constructed as shown in the diagram below.

Explanation for the diagram:

• S - subject;
• was/were - past tense form of the verb to be (was - for singular, were - for plural);
• V ing is a verb ending in -ing.

I was reading a book yesterday morning. - Yesterdayin the morningIreadbook.

Jane was watching TV yesterday at 3 pm. - YesterdayVthreehoursdayJanewatchedTV.

They were singing all evening. - Theysangallevening.

Negative sentence structure

In a negative sentence, the particle not is added to the verb to be in the past tense.

I was not (wasn’t) sleeping when she came. - Whenshecame, INotsleeping.

They were not (weren’t) preparing dinner at 2 pm. - INtwohoursdayTheyNotprepareddinner.

He was not (wasn’t) playing computer games that morning. - Thosein the morningHeNotplayedVcomputergames.

Interrogative sentence structure

In general interrogative sentences in the Past Progressive, the auxiliary verb is placed at the beginning of the sentence.

WereyoudoingyourhomeworkwhenIcalledyou? - Were you doing your homework when I called you?

Was he walking along the street when it started to rain? - HewalkedBystreet, Whenhas begunrain?

In a special question, the question word comes first, followed by an auxiliary verb, a subject, and a verb ending in -ing.

What were they doing when the police arrived? - WhatTheydid, Whenarrivedpolice?

Wherewashegoingat 5pmyesterday? -Where was he going yesterday at five o'clock in the evening?

The easiest way to construct a special question for the subject is to insert Who instead of the subject.

Whowassingingsuchanicesong? -Who sang such a beautiful song?

Please note: the verb in this case is always placed in the third person singular, regardless of the number of the subject in the answer.

They were laughing loudly. Who was laughing loudly? - Theyloudlaughed. Who laughed out loud?

Use

There are four uses of the Past Progressive in English. The rules go like this:

• The past continuous tense can denote a continuous action that happened in the past at a specific time. The emphasis falls not on the completion of the action, but on its duration. I was listening to music yesterday from 2 till 3 pm. - YesterdayWithtwobeforethreehoursdayIlistenedmusic. At 10 am yesterday I was having my breakfast. - YesterdayV10 a.mIhad breakfast. It is necessary to distinguish between Past Progressive and Past Simple, where a specific time is also indicated. In the first case, the action lasted at a certain time, and in the second, it began or ended. Yesterday at 10 o’clock in the morning I went to bath. - YesterdayV10 hoursmorningIwentVbathroom(disposableaction). Yesterday at 10 o’clock in the morning I was having a shower. - YesterdayVtenhoursmorningItookshower(long-termaction).

• Past Progressive also denotes two continuous actions that happened at the same time in the past. WhileIwascyclingmyfriendswereplayingtennis - While I was riding a bike, my friends were playing tennis.While I was reading a book, my sister was typing a text. - ByeIreadbook, mysistertypedtext.

• Past Progressive also indicates a long action that was interrupted by a short action (the Past Simple is used to denote it). I was watching a film when someone was knocked at the door. - Iwatchedmovie, Howall of a suddenWho-ThatknockedVdoor. When I woke up, my mother was talking on the phone. - WhenIawoke, myMothertalkedByphone. When I was slicing a carrot, I cut my finger. - WhenIchoppedcarrot, Ihurtfinger.

• The past continuous tense is also used to indicate an irritating action in the past. In this case, the adverb always is necessary. They were always coming late! - TheyAlltimewere late! Youwerealwayscriticizingme! - You always criticized me!

Verbs not used in Progressive

However, we cannot do without exceptions. Not all verbs can be used in the Past Progressive. The examples below will illustrate this material. In tenses of the Continuous (Progressive) group, non-continuous verbs are not used. These include:

• feelings and emotions - to love, to adore, to hate, to like;
• possessing something - to have, to possess;
• thinking abilities - to think, to believe;
• sense organs - to see, to smell, to hear, to taste;
• other verbs - to seem, to appear, to sound.

Some verbs are mixed. They have several lexical meanings, and the choice of grammatical tense depends on this.

Particular attention should be paid to the verb to be. It can also be used in the Past Progressive to mean "behave differently than usual."

Hewasveryrudethatevening! - That evening he behaved very rudely! (He is always rude, that evening was no exception).

Hewasbeingveryrudethatevening!Icouldn't'tbelievemyeyes. - That evening he behaved very rudely! I couldn’t believe my eyes (Usually he is polite, but that evening he was rude).

She was so quiet yesterday. Why does she always behave herself in such a way? - Sheyesterdaywassuchquiet. Why does she always behave like this?

She was being so quiet yesterday. Anythingwrongwithher? - Yesterday she was so quiet. She is all right?

So, Past Progressive indicates the duration of an action. But it is important to remember about non-continuous verbs - their use in any tense of the Continuous group is considered a gross mistake.

It is almost a vital necessity in our time. Children are introduced to its basics from a very early age, and a diligent high school student is even able to speak fluently in English. Like any other language, it has its own characteristics, which should be given a lot of attention.

According to those who began studying as adults, one of the most complex features of this language is. involves dividing all situations according to the time when they occurred, are occurring or will occur relative to a given moment. Sometimes it is difficult for beginners to immediately master this topic, but diligence, attention to theory and active practice will help you quickly adapt.

One of the most curious times – Past Continuous Tense

It is past tense, but continuous. That is, they use it not just wanting to present the listener with a fact (for example, “Olya cooked dinner yesterday”), but with the goal of describing it, indicating its duration (for example, “Olya cooked dinner yesterday: she baked a turkey and made a cake "). But how do you construct such sentences in English?

How is the Past Continuous formed?

Was and Were in Past Continuous

In order to create a sentence using this tense, it is necessary to use the second form of the verb “to be” (“”), that is - (if we are talking about the singular) or - (if there are several subjects of conversation). In addition, the verb used in speech acquires

The proposal itself, depending on its form, will be structured as follows:

• Affirmative: singular (I/ he/ she/ it) + was…;

plural (we/ you/ they) + were…

• : (I/he/she/it) + was not (wasn’t)…;

(we/you/they) + were not (weren’t)…

• : was I/he/she/it… ?

were we/you/they… ?

In negative sentences, both the full form was not and were not and the short form can be used. The second, by the way, is more common, while the full one is used extremely rarely, mainly in official speech.

When to use Past Continuous

There are three main cases when in the process of narration one should turn to this particular time.

• If the described continuous action occurred over some unknown period of time, at some point in the past. That is, there is no clear data on how many minutes or hours the action lasted, but the very fact of its duration is important for the further course of the conversation.

I was walking at 18:00 yesterday.

• If it lasted while some other action occurred. That is, one of the events described was already ongoing at a certain moment, but suddenly another event began, inextricably linked with the first.

When Jenny came home, Kate was sleeping.

• If several actions in the past occurred during the same period of time. It is not known whether they began at the same time, or whether the second connected at some point to the first. The fact is that both of them are equal and have the same meaning in a conversation.

While Tony was cooking, Ann was reading a book.

What is noteworthy is that in the latter case the words while or when are always used, which will be discussed in more detail below.

But there is another type of situation when you have to resort to. These are discussions about plans for the future that took place in the past.

In order to say, for example, that Amy was planning how she would be reading a book on the beach.

The beginning of the sentence is a familiar construction, composed according to the rules of the Past Continuous, while its second part begins with the words “ ” (in the negative form - wouldn’t be), followed by a verb that certainly ends in “ing”.

Thus, combining within one sentence, two tenses are able to recreate the picture in its entirety, taking into account all the nuances.

What is the difference between Past Continuous and Past Simple

In order to operate with the proper ease with verb forms, building a competent sentence, you need to have a clear understanding of in what cases this or that tense is used.

• differs primarily in the completeness of thought.
• Past Continuous emphasizes the duration of the action.

That is, if you need to notify a fact, make the listener aware, Simple is used, and when you need to tell more about an event, then Continuous is used. Here, for example, is the sentence: “Mary did her homework yesterday.” And - another, similar at first glance: “Mary did her homework yesterday.”

But the first must be framed in the Past Simple, and the second in the Past Continuous, due to the indicated duration of the action: “Mary was doing her homework yesterday.”

While and When in the Past Continuous

It happens that you need to talk about two actions occurring in the past in parallel, that is, during one period of time common to them. To talk about an event that was unfolding while another event was happening, you should use the words “while” or “when.” What is the difference between them?

When the form of conversation is formal and does not allow colloquial sentences, use while. If we are talking about a friendly conversation, colloquial when would be more appropriate.

For example: “Kate was singing, when I was eating my breakfast.”

The when form is simpler, unobtrusive and ideal for conversations in informal settings, but is absolutely not suitable for formal conversations. When communicating with native speakers, you need to carefully monitor this! Inappropriate use of words that are inappropriate in their form can cause misunderstandings and conflicts, which, by the way, could easily be avoided.

Thus, knowing the rules for using time, as well as the signs of situations that should be described using it, you can significantly improve your level.

The main thing is not to neglect studying the most important rules and not to be lazy in applying the acquired information in practice, because it is this that helps to bring the application of knowledge to automation, which, in fact, is the essence of free communication.

Hello dear friends!
In this article I will teach you how to talk about events in the past more vividly and interestingly, namely, I will tell you how to distinguish the past simple from the past progressive.

Having a good understanding of the rules for forming the simple past tense, it’s time to add another past tense to your speech and learn how to use them correctly together. Everything, as always, has simple rules. Let's look at them.

Without auxiliary and irregular verbs

As we can see, the form you learned to be in the past tense came in handy here, because it is part of the scheme. Choose was or were depending on the pronoun and add the ending -ing to the verb. The principle is the same as in the Present Continuous: to be serves as an auxiliary, the particle not is added to it in negation, and in the question it comes first. Moreover, the ending –ing is always present.

Learning to speak beautifully

The principle of difference between these two times is similar to and. If the first focuses on the action as a fact, then the second on its duration. By learning to use them in your story, you will significantly enrich your speech.

Consider the sentences: Yesterday Tom and Sara were walking in the park. They started at 7 p.m. and finished at 9 p.m. At 8 p.m. they were walking in the park. That is, at 8 pm this event was in progress, as indicated by the past continuous.

While the simple past indicates an action from beginning to end - perfect, complete, the Past Continuous focuses on the fact that what is being described lasted for a certain period of time. In this case, we are not interested in when it started or ended.

For comparison, in Russian the perfect and imperfect forms are used for this. I watched the movie last night - imperfect view. I watched this film - perfect view. Let's translate into English accordingly:

I was watching a film last night.

I watched a film.

Compare more examples:

I walked home after the training.

I was walking home when I met Matt.

The first sentence contains an event from beginning to end - I walked home after training. In the second, the action described in progressive paste is unfinished. I met Matt while walking home.
Very often in storytelling these two past tenses are used in the same sentence to say that one action interrupted another or happened while another was in progress.

For example, I was jogging when it started to rain. I was out for a run - it started earlier and was in progress. It started to rain - something that prevented my run happened during it.
Try to analyze the following sentences yourself: I was cooking dinner when the phone rang. I hurt my knee when I was working. What does the simple paste indicate here? What is progressive paste used for?

Did you get the point? Let’s compare two examples, and it will become even clearer to you:
When Dan arrived we were having lunch. When Dan arrived we had lunch.
The meaning of what is said depends entirely on what tense you use. In the first case, when Dan arrived, we were already having lunch; he arrived in the middle of this event. In the second case, Dan arrived and then we had lunch. That is, Dan was in time for the beginning of lunch.
As we understand from the previous example, the simple past is used to list events that happened one after another. The doorbell rang, I opened the door and saw my friend. First the bell rang, then I opened the doors and saw a friend.
To describe static actions or landscapes, the Past Progressive is used: It was a lovely day, the sun was shining, the birds were singing.

Active and inactive

Now that you have a good understanding of the rules, you need to remember that not all verbs can be used in the past progressive, not all can be added with the ending –ing. Because some of them simply do not imply duration in their meaning. They are called non action verbs. Usually these are words of mental action, such as think, understand, or states: smell.

Over time, you will learn to feel it, and you will not necessarily have to memorize a list of them. I will give you examples of the most common ones: like, want, need, prefer, belong, seem, know, understand, realize, believe, remember.

To find out other grammar topics that interest you, and perhaps other languages ​​and countries, subscribe to the Viva Europe blog.

You will also receive as a gift, completely free of charge, an excellent basic phrasebook in three languages, English, German and French. Its main advantage is that there is Russian transcription, so even without knowing the language, you can easily master colloquial phrases.

I was with you, a philologist of the English language, Ekaterina Martynova. Have a good day!