VI.

| Thì quá khứ tiếp diễn – The past continuous tense

1. Cách dùng :
a. Diễn đạt hành động đang xảy ra tại một thời điểm cụ thể trong quá khứ
Ví dụ : When my sister was watching the football match , it was 8 p.m.
At this time last night, I was doing grammar test but it was not really good.

b. Diễn đạt hai hành động xảy ra đồng thời trong quá khứ
Ví dụ : While I was taking a bath, she was using the computer.
While I was driving home, Peter was trying desperately to contact me.

c. Diễn đạt hành động đang xảy ra thì có hành động khác xen vào
Ví dụ : I was listening to the news when she phoned.
I was walking in the street when I suddenly fell over.

d. Hành động lặp đi lặp lại trong quá khứ và làm phiền đến người khác
Ví dụ : When he worked here, he was always making noise
My mom was always complaining about my room when she got there

e. Dùng để tả cảnh, tạo background:

Ví dụ : It was a beautiful day, the bird was singing and the sun was shining

2. Công thức :
(+) : S + was/were + V-ing (+ O)
(-) : S + was/were + not + V-ing (+ O)
(?) : Was/were + S + V-ing (+ O)
Ví dụ :
(+) While I was doing the Grammar test, my teacher was surfing net.
(-) While I was doing the Grammar test, my teacher was not surfing net. She was staring at me.
(?) Was my teacher watching us while we was doing the Grammar test ?

3. Dấu hiệu nhận biết :

Trong câu có các trạng từ chỉ thời gian trong quá khứ kèm theo thời điểm xác định.

– at + giờ + thời gian trong quá khứ (at 12 o’clock last night,…)

– at this time + thời gian trong quá khứ. (at this time two weeks ago, …)

– in + năm (in 2000, in 2005)

– in the past (trong quá khứ)

+ Trong câu có “when” khi diễn tả một hành động đang xảy ra và một hành động khác xen vào.
Ngoài việc dựa vào cách dùng của thì Quá khứ tiếp diễn, ngữ cảnh của câu thì các bạn cũng hãy cân nhắc sử
dụng thì Quá khứ tiếp diễn khi có xuất hiện các từ như: While (trong khi); When (Khi); at that time (vào
thời điểm đó);…
4. Bài tập :
Exercise 1: Use the past continuous
1. At this time last year, they were building (build) this house.

2. I was driving (drive) my car very fast when you called me.

3. I was chatting (chat) with my friends while my teacher was teaching (teach) the lesson yesterday.

4. My father was watching (watch) TV when I got home.

5. At this time yesterday, I were preparing (prepare) for my son’s birthday party.

6. What were you doing (do) at 8 pm yesterday?

7. Where were you going (go) when I saw you last weekend?

8. They weren’t going (not go) to school when I met them yesterday.

9. My mother wasn’t doing (not do) the housework when my father came home.

10. My sister was reading (read) books while my brother were playing (play) football yesterday
afternoon.

Exercise 2: Use your own ideas to complete the sentences.Use the past continuous

1 Matt phoned while we …………..

2 The doorbell rang while I ……….

3 We saw an accident while we ……….

4 Ann fell asleep whiel she ……….

5 The television was on, but nobody ……….

Exercise 3 : Fill in blank with the correct verb form :

1. Let me tell you about one of the craziest moments I’ve experienced in my life. A few weeks ago I ……(meet)
my brother and his wife at the airport. They ……(go) to Paris for their honeymoon and I ……(go) to Rome. We
……(have) a chat while we ...…(wait) for our flights. It …...(go) so well when suddenly a man …………(shout)
out loud and ………(claim) that he ………(carry) a bomb. Luckily, the security guard ……(notice) something
strange with the ticking sounds of the so-called ‘bomb’ and eventually ……(find) out that it ……(be)
2. Let me talk about that one time I nearly got into an accident. I ……(cycle) home when a man ……(step) out
into the road in front of me. I …(go) quite fast, but luckily I ……(manage) to stop in time and …(not hit) him.
The man quickly …(apologize) and ……(explain) that he ……(think) about something else and ……(not pay)
Exercise 4: Tìm và sửa lỗi sai trong mỗi câu sau đây.
1. I was play football when she called me.
2. Was you study Math at 5 p.m. yesterday?
3. What was she do while her mother was making lunch?
4. Where did you went last Sunday?
5. They weren't sleep during the meeting last Monday.
6. He got up early and have breakfast with his family yesterday morning.
7. She didn't broke the flower vase. Tom did.
8. Last week my friend and I go to the beach on the bus.
9. While I am listening to music, I heard the doorbell.
10. Peter turn on the TV, but nothing happened.
Exercise 5: Chia động từ ở các câu sau đây
1. I (walk)___________down the street when it began to rain.
2. At this time last year, I (attend)__________an English course.
3. Jim (stand) ________ under the tree when he heard an explosion.
4. The boy fell and hurt himself while he (ride)_________ a bicycle.
5. When we met them last year, they (live)______ in Santiago.
6. The tourist lost his camera while he (walk) _____ around the city.
7. The lorry (go) _____ very fast when it hit our car.
8. While I (study)_____in my room, my roommates (have)________ a party in the other room.
9. Mary and I (dance)_________ the house when the telephone rang.
10. We (sit)________ in the café when they saw us.
Exercise 6 : Use the past simple or past cont.
1. ‘What ……………… (you/do) at this time yesterday? ’ ‘I was asleep.’
2. How fast ……………… (you/drive) when the accident ……………… (happen)?
3. I haven’t seen my best friend for ages. When I last ……… (see) him, he …… (try) to find a job.
4. I …… (walk) along the street when suddenly I ……(hear) footsteps behind me. Somebody …… (follow) me.
I was scared and I ……(start) to run.
5. Last night I …… (drop) a plate when I …… (do) the washing-up. Fortunately it …… (not/break).
6. I …… (open) the letter when the wind ……… (blow) it out of my hand.
7. The burglar …… (open) the safe when he …… (hear) footsteps. He immediately …… (put) out his torch and
…… (crawl) under the bed.
8. As I …… (cross) the road I …… (step) on a banana skin and …… (fall) heavily.
9. Just as I ………(wonder) what I should do next, the acceptance letter came in my mailbox.
Exercise 7 : Use the past simple or past cont. to complete the paragraph
In my last holiday, I went to Hawaii. When I (go) 1… to the beach for the first time, something wonderful
happened. I (swim) 2…... in the sea while my mother was sleeping in the sun. My brother was building a castle
and my father (drink) 3…… some water. Suddenly I (see) 4……. a boy on the beach. His eyes were blue like
the water in the sea and his hair (be) 5…… beautiful black. He was very tall and thin and his face was brown.
My heart (beat) 6…....fast. I (ask) 7...…him for his name with a shy voice. He (tell) 8...… me that his name was
John. He (stay) 9…... with me the whole afternoon. In the evening, we met again. We ate pizza in a restaurant.
The following days we (have) 10…... a lot of fun together. At the end of my holidays when I left Hawaii I said
good-bye to John. We had tears in our eyes. He wrote to me a letter very soon and I answered him.
Exercise 8: Fill in the blanks with either past simple or past continuous

1. I (call) my friend at nine last night, but he (be, not) at home. He (work) at the restaurant.

2. I (hear, not) the thunder during the storm last night because I (sleep) .

3. It was beautiful yesterday when we went for a walk in the park. The sun (shine) ______. A cool breeze (blow)
. The birds (sing) .

4. My brother and sister (argue) about something when I (walk) into the room.

5. I got a package in the mail. When I (open) it, I (find) a surprise.

6. Tommy went to his friend‘s house, but the boys (be, not) ________They (play) soccer in the vacant lot
down the street.

7. Stanley (climb) the stairs when he (trip) and (fall) . Luckily, he (hurt, not)
8. While Mrs. Emerson (read) the little boy a story, he (fall) asleep, so she (close) the
book and quietly (tiptoe) out of the room.

9. A: (hear, you) what he just said?

B: No, I (listen, not) . I (think) about something else

10. A: How (break, you) your arm?

B: I (slip) on the ice while I (cross) the street in front of the dorm.