Simple Past Tense

The simple past tense is a sentence used to express events that occurred in
the past and have ended in the past. Unlike the past, events that occurred in the past,
but still happen in the present.

⚫ Simple past tense sentence, the formula is as follows :

S + Verb 2 + O
Or
S + To Be (Was / Were)

In the simple past tense sentence, the verb used is the second form of the
verb. There are 2 types of verbs / verbs, namely Regular Verb and Irregular Verb.
- For regular verbs, add -ed / -d after the first form verb. As an example :
Play - Played
Try - Tried
Cry - Cried
Stay - Stayed
Touch - Touched

- For Irregular verbs, including to be, the verb forms of the two are very different,
Example :
Awake - Awoke

Begin - Began

Drink - Drank

Eat - Ate

Run - Ran
However, there are some Irregular verbs that have the same verb form as the basic
verb form. Example:
Set - Set
Split - Split
Cut - Cut
Put - Put
Spread - Spread

⚫ Simple past tense negative

To form negative simple past tense sentences, the formula is as follows :

S + did + not + Verb 1

Or

S + To Be (Was / Were) + not

⚫ Simple Past Tense Interogative

To form a simple past tense interogative sentence, the formula is as follows

Did + S + Verb 1
or
Was / Were + S
Example :
· Did you see my bag on the table?
· Did the student come to school?
· Did you sleep enough last night?

⚫ Using the Simple Past Tense

Understanding the use of the simple past tense is necessary so that

Edufriends can know what sentence patterns to use. In short, the simple past tense is
used to describe events that occurred in the past. However, to better understand its
proper use, consider the following explanation:
1. Describe events in the past in a definite time.
Example:
- I ate oatmeal this morning
- She met her mother last night
- My brother didn't answer my call that day
2. Describe events in the past and have finished at that time.
Example:
- I went to the market yesterday
- She gave me this doll 2 days ago
- I was sick yesterday.
3. Describe events that are repeated or have become a habit in the past.
Example:
- I went to the beach every morning, when I was in Bali.
- My mom visited me every year, until I graduated
- I often brought my lunch to school, when I was in Junior High School
4. Describe feelings or emotions that occurred in the past.
Example:
- I was happy to see my mom
- She was so sad because her kitten is gone
5. Describe events that have become a habit in the past but are no longer practiced.
The verb used is used to.
Example:
- She used to feed stray cats, but not anymore since she died
- He used to love me but not anymore
⚫ Adverb of Frequency
Tenses are sentences related to time, so of course there is an explanation of
the time. Keep in mind, that the adverb of time used is the information of the past.
Among others are :

A. Yesterday : kemarin
B. The day before yesterday : sehari sebelum kemarin
C. Last night : tadi malam
 D. Last week : pekan lalu
E. Last month : bulan lalu
F. A few days ago : beberapa hari lalu
G. Two weeks ago : dua minggu lalu
H. Just now : tadi/baru saja
I. In 2015 : di tahun 2015
J. A long time ago : dahulu kala

⚫ Example tenses:
1. ( + ) Arif was the smartest students in the class
( - ) Arif was not the smartest students in the class
( ? ) Was Arif the smartest students in the class ?
2. ( + ) He was so busy
( - ) He was not so busy
( ? ) Was he so busy?
3. ( + ) Dewi was happy to work here
( - ) Dewi was not happy to work here
( ? ) Was Dewi happy to work here?
4. ( + ) the movie was so fantastic
( - ) the movie was not so fantastic
( ? ) Was the movie so fantastic?
5. ( + ) She was angry because you were late.
( – ) She was not happy because you were late.
( ? ) Was she angry because you were late?
6. ( + ) My parents were very busy yesterday.
( – ) My parents weren’t able to come here yesterday.
( ? ) Why weren’t your parents able to come here yesterday?
7.(+) The girl was tired so she went to bed early.
( – ) The girl wasn’t lazy; she was just tired.
( ? ) Was the girl lazy so she went to bed early?
7. ( + ) They were very excited to meet the artists.
( – ) They weren’t bored to meet the artists.
( ? ) Were they bored to meet the artists?
8. ( + ) My mother was outside when my father called.
( – ) My mother wasn’t at home when my father called.
( ? ) Was your mother at home when your father called?
9. ( + ) The athletes were friends since they were in Junior High School.
( – ) The athletes weren’t arrogant people.
( ? ) Were the athletes arrogant people?
10. ( + ) The hotel was very expensive.
( – ) The hotel wasn’t cheap.
( ? ) Was the hotel expensive?
11. ( + ) Those books were in your bag so it was very heavy
( – ) Those books weren’t in my bag so mine is light.
( ? ) Were those books in my bag?
12. ( + ) The bed was too small for all of them.
( – ) The bed wasn’t comfortable so they weren’t able to sleep well.
( ? ) Wasn’t the bed too small for all of them?
13. ( + ) We were still here after you went home.
( – ) We weren’t as happy as you were here.
( ? ) Were you still here and happy after I went home?
14. ( + ) They were thirsty so they drank much water.
( – ) They were not hungry so they didn’t eat anything.
( ? ) Weren’t they hungry?
15. ( + ) It was cold so I put on my jacket.
( – ) The weather wasn’t good when I was on the way home.
( ? ) Was the weather good when you were on the way home?
16. ( + ) It was cold and wet outside on December 2nd.
( – ) It wasn’t warm and bright on December 2nd.
( ? ) Wasn’t it cold and wet outside on December 2nd?
17. ( + ) My children were at home last night.
( – ) My children weren’t at the party last night.
( ? ) Were your children at the party last night?
18. ( + ) My younger sister was happy because she got a big present.
( – ) She wasn’t sad at that time.
( ? ) Was she happy because she got a big present?
19. (+) My grandfather was a soldier.
(-) My grandfather was not a soldier.
(?) Was your grandfather a soldier?
20. (+) Toro was here this morning.
(-) Toro was not here this morning.
(?) Was Toro here this morning?