Past Continuous Tense (example : to play) Affirmative I was playing You were playing He/she/it was playing We were

playing You were playing They were playing Negative Long Form Contracted Form I was not playing I wasn't playing You were not playing You weren't playing He/she/it was not playing He/she/it wasn't playing We were not playing We weren't playing You were not playing You weren't playing They were not playing They weren't playing Interrogative Was I playing? Were you playing? Was he/she/it playing? Were we playing? Were you playing? Were they playing?

The Past Continuous tense is used to talk about a continuous action which took place at a specific time in the past. Yesterday evening, at 9 o'clock, I was watching television. It is also used, in sentences with when or while, to refer to an action which was taking place when a shorter, brief action took place. Yesterday evening, while I was watching television, the phone rang. When my husband arrived home yesterday evening, I was cooking dinner.

Past Simple - Past Continuous

Complete the sentences below with the correct form of the tense in brackets
(ex : Past Simple : I played Past Continuous : I was playing)

1) When her husband ____________ (arrive) home, Anne __________________(watch) television. 2) I _________________ (prepare) dinner when the telephone _________________ (ring). 3) What ________________________ (you do) when the postman ______________(arrive)? 4) Julie _______________ (learn) to drive when she ___________________ (work) in London. 5) Where ___________________ (you sit) when the show (begin)? 6) I ________________ (visit) Athens while I ____________________ (tour) Greece. 7) It was when he ____________________ (cross) the street that John______________ (fall). 8) What ________________(you see) while you ______________________ (wait) for the bus? 9) Where _______________________ (you go) when your car ________________(break) down? 10) Julie ________________ (meet) Peter when she ___________________ (walk) in the park.

Correction

1) arrived - was watching 2) was preparing - rang 3) were you doing - arrived 4) learnt/learned - was working 5)were you sitting - began 6) visited - was touring 7) was crossing - fell 8) did you see - you were waiting 9) were you going - broke down 10) met - was walking