> Positive | > Negative | > Question |
I saw him yesterday. |
I didn't (did not) see him yesterday. | Did you see him? |
>I arrived yesterday. | >I didn't (did not) arrive. | >Did I arrive yesterday? |
>You arrived yesterday. | >You didn't (did not) arrive. | >Did you arrive? |
>He/she/it arrived | >He/she/it didn't arrive | >Did he/she/it arrive? |
>We arrived | >We didn't arrive | >Did we arrive? |
>They arrived | >They didn't arrive | >Did they arrive? |
> Common mistakes | > Correct version | > Why? |
>
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> I worked in London. | > In positive sentences, a helping verb such as 'was' or 'did' is not used. |
>
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> Did he work in London? | > The helping verb 'did' is used in past simple questions. |
>
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> Did he work in London? | > The helping verb 'did' is used in past simple questions. |
>
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> Did he write a letter? | > The main verb is used in the infinitive form in questions and negatives. |
>
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> He didn't write a letter. | > The main verb is used in the infinitive form in questions and negatives. |
Most verbs conjugate by adding -ed like the verb "wait" below.
Positive | Negative | Question |
---|---|---|
I waited. | I did not wait. | DidI wait? |
You waited. | You did not wait. | Didyou wait? |
We waited. | We did not wait. | Didwe wait? |
They waited. | They did not wait. | Didthey wait? |
He waited. | He did not wait. | DidHe wait? |
She waited. | She did not wait. | DidShe wait? |
It waited. | It did not wait. | DidIt wait? |
Many verbs, such as "have," take irregular forms in the Simple Past. Notice that you only use the irregular verbs in statements. In negative forms and questions, "did" indicates Simple Past. To learn more about irregular verbs, visit Englishpage.com's Irregular Verb Dictionary. You can also use Englishpage.com's Online Irregular Verb Flashcards to memorize irregular verb forms.
Positive | Negative | Question |
---|---|---|
I had | I did not have | Did I have? |
You had | You did not have. | Did you have? |
We had | We did not have. | Did we have? |
They had | They did not have. | Did they have? |
He had | He did not have. | Did he have? |
She had | She did not have. | Did she have? |
It had | It did not have. | Did it have? |
The verb "be" is also irregular in the Simple Past. Unlike other irregular verbs, there are two Simple Past forms: "was" and "were." It also has different question forms and negative forms. Always remember that you DO NOT use "did" with the verb "be" in the Simple Past.
Positive | Negative | Question |
---|---|---|
I was. | I was not. | Was I? |
You were. | You were not. | Were you? |
We were. | We were not. | Were we? |
They were | They were not | Were they? |
He was | He was not | Was he? |
She was. | She was not. | Was she? |
It was. | It was not. | Was it? |
Modal verbs behave very strangely in the Simple Past. The most important verb to remember is "must." Notice how it becomes "had to" in the Simple Past.
"Must" becomes "had to":
Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.
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.
The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.
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.
The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts or generalizations which are no longer true. As in USE 4 above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the expression used to."
Clauses are groups of words which have meaning but are often not complete sentences. Some clauses begin with the word "when" such as "when I dropped my pen..." or "when class began..." These clauses are called when-clauses, and they are very important. The examples below contain when-clauses.
When-clauses are important because they always happen first when both clauses are in the Simple Past. Both of the examples above mean the same thing: first, I paid her one dollar, and then, she answered my question. It is not important whether "when I paid her one dollar" is at the beginning of the sentence or at the end of the sentence. However, the example below has a different meaning. First, she answered my question, and then, I paid her one dollar.
The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.