Past Simple
FORM:
FUNCTION:
1. To talk about finished actions in the past
I graduated in 1974 and went on to university the following year.
I didn't buy the shoes yesterday as they weren't on special anymore.
Past simple is usually used with a past time phrase such as 'in 1954', 'on Monday', 'at 5pm' and '5 hours ago'.
2. To talk about past states
When I was young, I thought Santa Claus was real.
I always preferred to study on my own than with my friends.
For more information on action and state verbs, click here.
3. Past Habits and Routines
When I was young, I walked to school every day.
I used to play tennis after school but now I don't.
For more information on past habits and routines, check out this lesson.
Past Continuous
FORM:
FUNCTION:
1. To talk about actions in progress at a particular point in the past
I was sleeping when you called me.
This tense is usually used with a time phrase or another past tense (past simple or past continuous).
The time phrase in this example is 'when you called me'. 'When' time phrases are typically used with a simple tense. Other time phrases that can be used are 'at 5pm', 'all night long' and 'during the movie'.
We use 'when + past simple' to say that an action interrupted an ongoing past action, or happened some time during the past action.
I was sitting on the bus when I saw a car crash into a tree.
In this example, the first action is 'sit', and the second action 'see' may happen during 'sitting on the bus', and this would mean that the bus continued its journey despite the crash. It is also possible for the second action 'see' to interrupt 'sitting on the bus', and this would mean that the car crash interrupted the bus journey. You can see this on the timeline below.
We use 'while + past continuous' to say that an action happened at the same time as another past action.
I was listening to some music while I was sitting on the bus.
In this example, both actions 'listen' and 'sit' happen at the same time. It is also possible to use 'when' instead of 'while', but it is unnatural to use 'while + past simple'.
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