Lê Việt Anh - 10 English 1 PAST TENSE
Past simple
Single completed actions
Repeated or habitual actions in the past
General truths about the past
Permanent situations and states in the past
The main events in a story
The present (in conditional sentences)
The present (after wish, it’s time, would
rather, etc)
Emphatic past simple
To emphasize contrast in the past
To emphasize strong feeling in the past
Sony and Phillips invented the CD in the early 1980s.
We moved house a lot when I was a kid.
Early clocks were usually very unreliable.
Did the ancient Egyptians have more advanced
technology than other civilizations?
Frank turned on the TV and sat on the sofa.
If we didn’t have computer, what would the world be
like?
I’d rather Michael didn’t waste so much time playing
video games.
Perhaps our grandparents didn’t have e-mail, but
they did have the telephone and telegrams.
I did enjoy our visit to the Science Museum last
summer.
1
 Simple Past Present Perfect

Past continuous

Actions in progress at a particular moment in the
past
Actions in progress around a particular moment
in the past
Temporary situations and series of actions in the
past
Changing and developing situations in the past
Were you chatting to Matt online at midnight last
night?
At the turn of the twentieth century, many
discoveries were being made in physics and other
sciences.
At the time, I was working for a large software
company in California.
I was getting frustrated with my Internet provider
2
 so I decided to change.
Annoying or amusing past habits (usually with When she was young, Tina was always taking
always) things apart to see how they worked.
Background information in a story It was raining outside and people were making
their way home after work
Actions in progress over a period of time Were you writing e-mails all yesterday morning?
Two actions in progress at the same time While I was playing a computer game, my
brother was doing his homework.
The present and the future (in conditional Would you be happier if you were studying
sentences) computer science?
The present and the future (after wish, it’s time, I wish we were going to the computer fair next
would rather, etc) weekend.
Past continuous vs past simple
We often use the past continuous to describe background events in progress and the past simple for
main events.
 We were talking about MP3s when Andrea mentioned her new music website.
We normally use the past simple to describe or repeated actions in the past, not the past continuous
 When I was a child, I visited my grandmother every week.

Past continuous vs present perfect continuous

In general, the past continuous is used to refer to actions in progress during periods of time or at
moments which are finished. The present perfect continuous is used to refer to actions in progress
during periods of time which continue up to the present.
 We were working on my computer for four hours yesterday.
 We have been working on my computer for hours so far.
Past perfect simple

Situations and states before the past
Completed actions before a moment in the past
A series of actions, continuing up to a moment in
the past
Completed actions where the important thing is
the result at a moment in the past.
Had you had your computer long before it broke
down?
When taking films appeared, the cinema had
already become a popular form of entertainment.
When Dimitra called, I had managed to fix her
computer.
By the time of his death, Thomas Edison had
invented a number of things that changed
everyday life.
I beat Jason at International Captain because I’d
played it a lot with my brother.

3
Past perfect continuous

Actions and situations continuing up to a moment in
the past (or just before a moment in the past)
Would
Past habits, particularly for the distant past
She’d been writing computer games for over ten
years before she finally had a hit.
The ancient Greeks would rely on the power of
slaves, rather than machines.

Watch out
 Would: can also be used with a continuous infinitive when we are referring to a habit involving actions
in progress.
Whenever I went to James’s house, he would usually be playing on his computer.
 Would: is not usually used to refer to past states.

Used to
Past habits and states, particularly for the distant It used to seem strange to be able to
past communicate over long distances.
Watch out
Remember that used to is not the same as be used to. Be used to refers to a situation that is now
familiar or no longer strange.
 At first, people found it strange sending messages by mobile, but now everyone’s used to it.
We use get used to to refer to the process of becoming familiar with a situation.
 It’s surprising how quickly people in the nineteenth century got used to travelling by train.

4
PAST TENSE - PRACTICE
Exercise 2: Put the verbs in brackets into the past simple or the past continuous
A. The sun (1)……………………was shining (shine) and the birds (2)……………………(sing)
were singing as Mike
was driving
(3)……………………(drive) down the country lane. He smiled
(4)……………………(smile) because he
(5)……………………(look
was looking forward forward) to the journey ahead. Mile (6)……………………(enjoy)
enjoyed driving,
especially when he (7)……………………(go)
went somewhere new. Then, suddenly, the engine
(8)……………………(begin)
began to make a strange noise and the car (9)……………………
stopped (stop) dead in the
middle of the road. Mike (10)……………………(try)
tried to start it, but nothing
(11)……………………(happen).
happened He (12)……………………(sigh),
sighed then (13)……………………(get
got out out) of
the car. As he (14)……………………(push)
was pushing the car to the side of the road, Mike
(15)……………………(start)
started to wish he had stayed at home.
B. John (1)……………………(enter)
entered his flat and (2)……………………(close)
closed the door. He
(3)……………………(hang
was hanging up up) his coat when he (4)……………………(hear)
heard a strange noise. A tap
(5)……………………(run)
was running in the kitchen. He (6)……………………(walk)
walked into the kitchen and
(7)……………………(turn)
turned it off. Then, he (8)……………………(freeze).
froze Someone (9)……………………
was standing

(stand) behind him. He (10)……………………(take)

took a deep breath and (11)……………………(turn)
turned around.
His flatmate, Steve, (12)……………………(lean)
was leaning in the doorway. “You (13)……………………(give)
gave me a
fright!” John exclaimed. Steve (14)……………………(laugh)
laughed at him, John (15)……………………(start)
started to
laugh, too. “I (16)……………………(think)
thought you had gone to London today,” he said. “No,”
replied
(17)……………………(reply) Steve. “Unfortunately, I (18)……………………(miss)
missed the train.”

Exercise 10. Put each verb in brackets into either the past simple, the present perfect simple, or
the present perfect continuous.
It was announced in London this morning that the British Oil Corporation (1) ... has discovered .... (discover)
has been drilling
oil under the sea near the Welsh coast. The company, which (2)........................................ (drill) for oil in the
found
area since 2001, (3).................................. (find) small amounts of oil near Swansea last month, and since then
has discovered
4)...................................... (discover) larger amounts under the seabed nearby. Last year the government
lent
(5)......................... gave
(lend) over £50,000,000 to BOC, and (6)..................... (give) permission for the company
to build an oil refinery and other facilities in South Wales. The reaction of local people to today's news (7)
has been
................................. have already welcomed(already welcome) the news,
(be) mixed so far. Local MPs (8)..................................
pointing out that the oil industry will bring badly needed jobs to the area. But local residents are worried about
had asked
the danger of pollution. 'Nobody (9).................................... (ask) us yet what we want,' said Ann Griffiths,
leader of the Keep Out The Oil Campaign. 'Look what (10).............................. happened (happen) when they
found got
(11)............................... (find) oil in Scotland in the 1960s. The oil companies (12)............................. (get)
did not tell/hasn't told
rich, not the local people. BOC (13)........................... (not tell) us the truth about what this is going to mean for
our people.' A BOC spokesman later (14)............................... refused (refuse) to comment. Meanwhile local
have been asking (ask) the government to hold an inquiry.
campaigners (15)...................................

Exercise 12. Put the verbs in brackets into an appropriate tense.

Jim (1) was not looking (not/look) forward to the exam. He (2) had ………………..
been studying (study) for the past two
months, and still (3) ………………..
was not feel (not/feel) sure that he (4) ………………..
knew (know) even half of what he

5
 was always questioning
should know. He (5) ……………….. (question) his teachers repeatedly about the material that (6)
………………..
had appeared (appear) on past exams, but he still (7) ………………..
was ... not (not/be) convinced that anything he
(8) ……………….. (learn) (9) ……………….. (be) relevant to this year’s exam. He (10) was
had learnt was ………………..
still studying
(still/study) at seven o’clock in the morning on the day of the exam; he (11) had
………………..
been revising(revise) all night
long, and (12) ………………..
felt (feel) exhausted. In fact he (13) had
………………..
been (be) so tired that he (14)
………………..
fell (fall) asleep in the middle of writing the exam, and (15) ……………….. (wake up) only just
woke up
in time to finish it.

Exercise 16. Complete this radio news report with the verbs given. Use present simple, present
continuous, past simple, past continuous. Sometimes you may need to change the order of the adverb
and verb.
Emergency services were bombarded with phone calls from all over the north of England last night by people
who (1) …………………….. (report) seeing blue objects shoot across the sky. Mrs Linda Hayward (2)
…………………….. (drive) along the B456 road at the time.
‘I usually (3) …………………….. (come) along that bit of road at about ten. As I (4) ……………………..
(go) past the old barn, I (5) …………………….. (see) a single bright blue light going across the road in front
of my car. I (6) …………………….. (stop) the car and (7) …………………….. (watch) it for about fifteen
minutes. It (8) …………………….. (travel) quite slowly from east to west and then it suddenly (9)
…………………….. (disappear). Until now I never (10) …………………….. (believe) in UFOs, although
my son forever (11) …………………….. (try) to persuade me that they (12) …………………….. (exist). But
now I(13) …………………….. (think) that maybe he (14) …………………….. (be) right.’
At the height of the panic, police stations (15) …………………….. (get) around a thousand calls an hour
from members of the public. Sergeant Ron Drake of the Ambledale police (16) …………………….. (be)
particularly busy. ‘Between 10 and 11 o’clock we (17) …………………….. (receive) around thirty calls. The
callers said they (18) …………………….. (see) a single blue light about as big as a car over the village. We
now (19) …………………….. (consider) searching the fields around Ambledale for any evidence left
behind.’
Dr Bart Mastow, a lecturer in astronomy at Trumpton University (20) …………………….. (offer) a simple
explanation. ‘The reports that (21) …………………….. (come) in last night (22) ……………………..
(suggest) that it (23) …………………….. (be) a meteor shower. This (24). …………………….. (be) not
unusual on a small scale, but last night’s shower (25) …………………….. (seem) to have been very large. In
fact, we (26) …………………….. (get) an increasing number of meteor showers, and my department
currently (27) …………………….. (research) possible reasons for this.’
But many witnesses to the events (28) …………………….. (believe) that they (29) ……………………..
(observe) more than a meteor shower, and the Ministry of Defence (30) …………………….. (say) that they
(31) …………………….. (take) the reports of UFO sightings very seriously.
Exercise 17: Put the verbs in brackets into the correct past tense.
A. When Simon (1)……arrived……………….at the cinema, dozens of people (2)…………………….(queue)
outside. They (3)…………………….(wait) to see the same film as Simon. Simon, however,
(4)…………………….(buy) a ticket in advance, so he (5)…………………….(walk) straight to the front of
the queue and (6)…………………….(enter) the cinema. He (7)…………………….(feel) relieved that he
didn’t have to queue. He (8)…………………….(reach) his seat just as the lights (9)…………………….(go
down) for the start of the film.
B. Last weekend, Cathy (1)…………………….(hire) a car and (2)…………………….(drive) to the seaside.
When she (3)…………………….(arrive) the wind (4)…………………….(blow) and the sky
6
(5)…………………….(be) cloudy. She (6)…………………….(get out) of the car and
(7)…………………….(take) a walk along the seafront. Then she (8)…………………….(decide) to go for
fish and chips at a nearby restaurant that she (9)…………………….(see) earlier and liked the look of. By the
time she (10)……………………. (leave) the restaurant, it (11)…………………….(already/grow) dark. As
she (12)……………………. (walk) to her car it (13)……………………. (begin) to rain. However, Cathy
(14)…………………….(not/mind) because she (15)…………………….(have) a wonderful day.
Exercise 18: Write a verb from the box in the correct form (present and past tense) in each gap.
appear check complete disappear get
go kidnap look make mean
open press race work rain remind
see start take travel wait wear
High-tech trouble

It all (1). ..................................as I made my way home from work. We (2) .................................... on a top
secret computer program, and everyone (3) .................................... pretty nervous about finishing on time, so it
was good to get away from the office. It (4) ....................................and it seemed like everyone (5)
...................................home at the same time, anxious to avoid getting wet. I (6) ...............................down into
the underground station and (7) ..................................for the train when I (8). ................................. her at the
end of the platform. She (9) ............................... a red leather jacket that (10) .................................. me of
something I'd seen in a film, although I couldn't remember when. As I watched, she (11).
..................................her handbag and (12) ....................................out what looked like a hand-held computer.
She (13) ......................something on the screen, then (14) .............................. in my direction. Suddenly, my
mobile phone (15) ...................................a. sound that (16) ................................. I had a text message.
Frowning, I (17) ................................. a key and the message (18) ............................We (19)
....................................your daughter. We know you (20) .................................... the program. Follow the
woman in red.' I looked up just as she (21) ................................. around the corner. I (22)
...................................after her.
Exercise 19. Fill each gap in this text with one suitable word.
DISASTER!
About seventy years ago, a Dutch ship was ……………… (1) near the North Pole; it……………… (2)
heading for Blacklead Island. On the ship was a scientist, Edgar Greenhead, who……………… (3) worked on
the island for many years; he had……………… (4) conducting research into the life of the local inhabitants,
who were Eskimos (Inuits). Greenhead had……………… (5) away for a long holiday and now he
was……………… (6) back to the island to continue his work.
At about midnight, Greenhead felt very tired as he had……………… (7) writing his journal all day. After he
had……………… (8) good-night to the captain, he……………… (9) down to his cabin. Outside
there……………… (10) a strong wind, and the waves……………… (11) crashing onto the side of the ship.
Greenhead was just……………… (12) ready to climb into his bunk when he suddenly……………… (13) a
great crash. He dashed up on deck and although it was dark he……………… (14) see that the

7
ship……………… (15) run into an iceberg.

Exercise 21 Write one word in each gap

The pencil
Because the pencil (1) ......................... become such a fundamental part of our lives, it's difficult to remember
that people (2) ......................... not been using them forever. Like other products of human ingenuity, pencils
had to be invented.
Before the first half of the sixteenth century, people (3) ......................... to use pens to write with and brushes
to paint with. It (4) ......................... also possible to use a metal stick to make faint marks on paper. However,
up to that point no one (5) ......................... found an easy way to make marks that could be erased. Then, some
time before 1565, a large deposit of the chemical, graphite, (6) ......................... found near Borrowdale in
Cumbria, England. The locals (7) ......................... use this graphite (a kind of soft black rock) to mark sheep.
Soon, tales of
this unusual soft substance (8) ......................... spread to artists around the world, who were eager to use it to
produce works of art.
Graphite is soft and dirty, and in order to write or draw with it, it (9) ......................... to have to be covered in
something, such as sheepskin or string. People had (10) ......................... trying to improve the pencil for some
time before manufacturers in Italy came up with the idea of enclosing the graphite in a wooden case. The
modern pencil was born.
Exercise 22: Complete the second sentence so that it has a similar meaning to the first sentence, using the
word given. Do not change the word given. You must use between three and eight words, including the
word given.
1. I started working at eight and I was still working at six in the evening, when you called. been
When you called, ........................................................................... ten hours.
2. We often went to the seaside with our grandparents as children. would
Our grandparents ........................................................................ to the seaside as children.
3. It's about seven years now since Laura started to learn Russian. learning
Laura ..........................................................................seven years.
4. Being with the older children soon stopped being frightening when I went to secondary school. used
Secondary school was frightening, but I .........................................................................with the older children.
5. Every night for the past week I have had the same dream. having
I ........................................................................ for a week now.
6. I always disliked karate lessons but now I'm starting to enjoy them. used
I ......................................................................... karate lessons, but now I'm starting to.