[B1T2]

Past continuous I
 Past continuous: an explanation

After having the past simple version of the verb

“be” figured out, I think the most reasonable
step forward is to learn Past Continuous tense
before coming back to Past Simple tense.
I like to do it this way because I think it allows a
good progression of difficulty.
 Past continuous: why?

The past continuous tense, also known as the

past progressive tense, refers to a continuing
action or state that was happening at some
point in the past. The past continuous tense is
formed by combining the past tense of the verb
“be” (i.e., was/were) with the verb’s present
participle (-ing word).
Past continuous: a timeline
 Past continuous: how?

Structurally speaking, past continuous is very

similar to present continuous. Here is the
formula:

[Subject + past “be” + continuous form +

complement]
 Affirmative past continuous: some examples
➢ I was drinking coffee at 9am.
➢ He was washing the dishes as I was
cooking.
➢ You were sleeping when I called you.
➢ They were watching a movie at 11pm
➢ We were having dinner while my
mom was watching the game.
Past continuous: spelling
General rule: + “ing”

Verb ends in “e”: - “e” + “ing”

Verb ends in “ie”: - “ie” + “ying”

Verb ends in stressed “CVC”: + (last consonant) + “ing”

[Note: this is important for written English. It makes no difference in speech!]

 Past continuous: questions and negatives
For negatives, add “not” after was/were:
➢ She wasn’t drinking last night.
➢ They weren’t dating last time we met.
For questions, the subject trades place with
was/were:
➢ Were we going in the right direction?
➢ Was I annoying you with my problems?