FOCUSED PRACTICE 1

Name : _________________
Class : ______ No.: _______

PAST SIMPLE vs PAST CONTINUOUS

A. PAST SIMPLE

FUNCTIONS:
a. To express past actions/events and sequence of actions.

e.g:
1. I fell off my bike last week.

b. To express past habit or situation.

e.g:
1. When I was younger, I couldn’t ride a bike.

ADVERBS COMMONLY USED IN PAST SIMPLE:

1. Adverbs of time: this morning, last night, yesterday, two days ago, last week, last

month, last year, etc.

2. Specific time signals: in 1945, in 2010, in 2020, etc.

CONJUNCTIONS COMMONLY USED IN PAST SIMPLE:

1. when, as, etc.

2. at that time, when I was young, etc.

1. Using “BE” :
PATTERN :
He
She
It adjective
was
S They + + adverb
were
We noun
I
You

e.g.:
1. Bernard was very kind. (Bernard sangat baik.)
2. I was in my room. (Saya ada di ruangan.)
3. Matthew and Michelle were best friends. (Matthew dan Michelle adalah teman baik)
NEGATIVE:
He
She
It adjective
was
S They + + not + adverb
were
We noun
I
You

e.g.:
1. I was not in the class. (Saya tidak berada di kelas.)
2. Michelle was not angry. (Michelle tidak marah.)
3. They were not the suspects. (Mereka bukan tersangka.)

YES-NO QUESTIONS

He
She
Was
It adjective
Were
+ S They + adverb ?
Wasn’t
We noun
Weren’t
I
You

e.g.:
1. Was I in the wrong place? (Apakah saya berada di ruang yang salah?)
2. Was Maria absent? (Apakah Maria absent?)
3. Wasn’t Patrick sick? (Apakah Patrick tidak sakit?
4. Were you the saviour? (Apakah Anda penyelamatnya?)
5. Weren’t you tired? (Apakah kamu tidak lelah?)

WH-QUESTIONS : What, Who, Where, When, Why, How, ect.

PATTERN :
he
he
What
WAS it
Where adjective
WERE they
When + + + adverb ?
WASN’T we
How noun
WEREN’T you
etc.
I
 e.g.:
1. What was your mother when she was still young? (Apa pekerjaan mamamu ketika
beliau masih muda?)
2. When were you born? (Kapan kamu dilahirkan?
3. Where was Clarissa yesterday? (Kemana Clarissa kemarin?)
4. Why were you sad? (Mengapa dia sedih?)

2. Using “VERB” :
A. SUBJECT : He, Andrew, She, Chelsea, It, They, We, Chelsea and I, You, I, The cat, The
students, The dog, etc.)

PATTERN :

S + V-2

e.g.:
1. Andrew shouted at you this morning. (Andrew meneriaki kamu tadi pagi.)
2. He asked many questions to the teacher yesterday. (Dia menanyakan banyak
pertanyaan pada guru kemarin.)
3. My grandmother read me a fable before I went to bed. (Dia membacakan sebuah cerita
tentang binatang sebelum saya tidur.)
4. My mother put your bag on the table this morning. (Mama menaruh tasmu di
atas meja tadi pagi.)
5. Rosanna heard a strange noise last night. (Rosanna mendengar suara aneh tadi malam.)
6. We spent three weeks in Bali last month. (Kami menghanbiskan waktu tiga minggu di
Bali bulan yang lalu

NEGATIVES
PATTERN :
DID NOT
S + + V-1
DIDN’T

e.g.:
1. Andrew didn’t work as a plumber when he was young. (Andrew tidak bekerja sebagai
tukang gali sumur Ketika dia masih muda.)
2. Matthew didn’t annoy me, but Sammy did. (Matthew tidak menggangguku, tapi Sammy
yang melakukan itu.)
3. He didn’t do his homework, so he didn’t go to school. (Dia tidak mengerjakan PRnya,
jadi dia tidak berangkat sekolah.)
4. He didn’t survey the market for his research, but he surveyed it to see the demands. (Dia
tidak melakukan survey pasar untuk penelitiannya, tapi untuk permintaan pasar.)
5. Mother didn’t put your bag in the kitchen. She put it in my room. (Mama tidak
menaruh tasmu di dapur, tapi di kamarku.)
YES-NO QUESTIONS
PATTERN :
DID
+ S + V-1 ?
DIDN’T

e.g.:
1. Did he help you yesterday? (Apakah dia membantumu kemarin?)
2. Did Lucy attend the meeting on time?(Apakah Lucy datang rapat tepat waktu?)
3. Didn’t you come to my party last night? (Apakah kamu tidak datang ke pestaku tadi
malam?
4. Didn’t your dog bark last night? (Apakah anjingmu tidak menggonggong tadi malam?)

WH-QUESTIONS : What, Who, Whom, Whose, Where, When, Why, How, How many, How
old, How often, ect.
PATTERN :
What
Where
When DID
+ + S + V-1 ?
How DIDN’T
How many
etc.

e.g.:
1. What did he tell you before you left to school? (Apa yang dia katakan padamu sebelum
kamu pergi?)
2. When did you arrive? (Kapan kamu tiba?
3. Where did Calvin go with Tracy? (Kemana Calvin pergi Bersama Tracy?)
4. Why did she behave like that? (Mengapa dia bertingkah seperti itu?)
5. Why didn’t you tell me the truth? (Mengapa kamu tidak mengatakan yang sejujurnya?)

B. USED TO + V-1 / DIDN’T USE TO + V-1

FUNCTIONS:

To express repeated past actions, habits, and states which are no longer true.
e.g.:
1. I didn’t use to exercise but now I exercise a lot.
2. I used to ride my bicycle to school but now I drive my car.
3. I used to study Japanese but now I learn Spanish.
4. My classmate didn’t use to study hard but now he spends his most time studying.
5. Stella used to play the violin but now she prefers the piano.
C. WOULD

FUNCTIONS:

To express repeated past actions, BUT NOT for habits, and states.
e.g.:
1. I would spend all my holidays playing outside.
2. I would always forget my homework until the teacher threatened to punish me.
3. My sister lived in Australia for many years, but she would always come home for
Christmas.
4. When he was at school, he would play football every Saturday.
5. When he was at university, he would sleep until noon at the weekends."

PRACTICE 1
Complete the sentences with the correct form of the verbs in Past Simple.
1. Luis ............. (show) me his new mobile phone yesterday.
2. I ............. (not, enjoy) science class last year
3. .............you ............. (read) that article about virtual reality last week?
4. I was doing my homework when the lights ............. (go out).
5. It was raining when I ............. (leave) the house.
6. She ............., ............. and ............. (write, illustrate, promote) the magazine by herself.
7. The tickets had already sold out when we ............. (get) to the cinema.

PRACTICE 2
Read the conversation between two friends and choose the correct verb forms to complete it.
Anita : ......... you .............. (hear) what happened to Jessica yesterday? She ......... (lock) herself
out of her house!
Bella : Ha, ha! How ......... she ............... (manage) to do that?
Anita : She’d gone into the kitchen to get some ice cream when her dog .......... (run) outside!
She ............. (forget) to shut the front door!
Bella : Was the dog OK?
Anita : Yes, she .............. (go) after the dog and .............. (pick) him up. However, by then the
door ............. (shut) behind her, so she .............. (wait) for an hour until her dad ..............
(come) home!
Bella : I don’t believe it! ............. she .............. (eat) her ice cream in the end?
Anita : No, when she finally got inside again, it ............... (melt)!
PRACTICE 3
Complete the sentences with the correct form of ‘used to’ or ‘would’. Sometimes both are
possible.
1. They ............. live in London but now they’ve moved to Scotland.
2. The Ancient Greeks ............. meet in the marketplace and discuss the issues of the day.
3. I ............. (not) like going up high buildings, but now I don’t mind.
4. My parents ............. work in the city but now they work from home.

PRACTICE 4
Complete the text with the correct form of the words in brackets.

Practice makes perfect!

I was reading a tech blog the other day when I ............ (notice) an ad for a table tennis robot! I had
never seen anything like that before! You see, table tennis is one of my favourite hobbies. In fact,
I hadn’t lost a match at school until my friend Cheng came along! If I had this robot, I could
practise for hours! ‘Mum! How about buying me this robot for my birthday?’ I ............ (ask)
hopefully. Mum ............ (take) one look at the price and ............ (shake) her head. ‘Sorry, Tom,
it’s too expensive. Anyway, why don’t you go around to Cheng’s house to practise your table
tennis anymore? You ............ (almost/live) there at one point.’ ‘Yes, I know, Mum,’ I answered.
‘But then he started winning all the time!’

B. PAST CONTINUOUS

a. For actions in progress in the past and temporary past situations

e.g:
1. A few minutes ago, they were still dancing.
2. At 9 o'clock, I was sitting on the train.
3. My brother was living in London at that time.
4. Sorry, can you repeat that? I wasn't listening when you said that.
5. What were you doing when you heard the explosion?
6. I remember that night. You were wearing that red dress.

b. To describe the background for a story, action or event.

e.g:
1. We were driving to the hotel when we got lost.
2. The picnic was so much fun. The sun was shining, the kids were running around and
the adults were playing volleyball.
3. What was I doing? I was reading a book and relaxing at home all evening.
 4. At the time, we were living in our car and showering in the school gym.
We were always praying for help.

c. For an action which was interrupted by another action.

e.g:
1. We were having a picnic when it started to rain.
2. I was waiting for the taxi when I met him.
3. The children were shouting when the teacher came in.
4. It was midnight when it was raining.

ADVERBIALS COMMONLY USED IN PAST CONTINUOUS:

1. Conjunctions : when, while, etc.
e.g.:
1. She was feeding her neighbours’ cat every morning while they were on holiday.
Then one morning, it was gone.
2. Lisa was cycling to school when she saw the accident.
3. What were you thinking about when you won the race?

2. Adverbs of frequency: always, constantly, forever, still.

e.g.:
4. We were always spending so much time in traffic. That’s why we decided to
move to the country and work from home.
5. My boss was constantly phoning me in my last job. I wouldn't say I liked it.
6. She was forever losing her keys.

PATTERN :
He
She
It
I was
+ + V-ing
were
They
We
You

e.g.:
1. Andrew was doing his homework when the earthquake happened. (Pada saat ada
gempa bumi, Andrew sedang mengerjakan PRnya.)
2. I was working on my project while my sister was sewing her jeans when it started
raining. ( Ketika hari mulai hujan, saya sedang mengerjakan proyek saya sedangkan
kakak saya sedang menjahit celana jeansnya.)
NEGATIVES
PATTERN :

He
She
It
I
was
+ + NOT + V-ing
They were
We
You
Andrew and Lucy
Patrick and I

e.g.:
1. Matther was not playing tennis when it started raining. (Ketika hari mulai hujan,
Mathew sedang tidak bermain tennis.)
2. I was not studying Physics when you called me. ( Ketika kamu telpon, saya sedang tidak
belajar Fisika.)

YES-NO QUESTIONS
PATTERN :
He
She
It
WAS
I
WASN’T
WERE + + V-ing ?
they
WEREN’T
we
you
Andrew and Lucy
Patrick and I

e.g.:
1. Was he helping you when you got a trouble? (Apakah dia membantumu ketika kamu
mengalami masalah?)
2. Was I doing something wrong when you shouted at me? (Apakah saya sedang
melakukan sesuatu yang salah ketika kamu berteriak kepada saya?)
3. Were Ronald and Lily going out when you arrived there? (Apakah Ronald dan Lily sedang
pergi keluar ketika kalian tiba di sana?)
4. Wasn’t Mr. Bona teaching your class when there was an explosion? (Apakah Pak Bona
sedang tidak mengajar di kelasmu Ketika terjadi ledakan?)
5. Weren’t you watching TV when someone knocked the door? (Apakah kamu sedang
tidak menonton TV Ketika ada orang mengetuk pintu?)
WH-QUESTIONS : What, Who, Whom, Whose, Where, When, Why, How, How many, How
old, How often, ect.
PATTERN :

he
she
What it
WAS
Where I
WASN’T
When
+ WERE + + V-ing ?
How they
WEREN’T
How many we
etc. you
Andrew and Lucy
Patrick and I

e.g.:
1. What was Calvin doing when the teacher entered the class? (Apa yang sedang Calvin
kerjakan Ketika guru masuk kelas?)
2. Why were you treating my parents like that? (Mengapa kamu memperlakukan orang
tuaku seperti itu?)
3. Where were they hiding? (Dimana mereka sedang bersembunyi?)
4. Who were standing over there at that time? (Siapa yang sedang berdiri di sana pada
saat itu?)

PRACTICE 5
Complete the text with the correct past simple or past continuous form of these verbs.
decide find form leave live
return spend start study work

Profile
Steve Jobs was an American inventor and businessman. He was always interested in technology
and (1.) .................. building computers while he (2.) .................. at college. He (3.) ..................
with his parents at that time. He (4.) .................. college after only six months and (5.) ..................
some time travelling around India. When he (6.) .................. to the US, he (7.) .................. a job
with the technology company Atari. While he (8.) .................. there, he (9.) .................. to set up
his own company. Jobs (10.) .................. the Apple company in 1976 with his friend Steve
Wozniak, and together they changed the world of phones and personal computing forever.
 C. PAST PERFECT

FUNCTIONS:
a. To express actions, events and situations that happened before another past action.

e.g:
1. I hadn’t realized that until my friend Anna and I binge-watched the series.
2. I had never travelled abroad before I went to Croatia last month.
3. The owners had neglected the building for years before it was knocked down.
4. Messi had scored two goals before the coach decided to substitute for him.

ADVERBS COMMONLY USED IN PRESENT PERFECT:

1. Adverbs of indefinite time: already, yet, before
2. Adverbs of frequency: ever, never
3. Adverbs of repetition: several times, many times, etc.

2. Using “BE” :
PATTERN :
He
She
It adjective
They + had + been + adverb
We noun
I
You

e.g.:
1. Andrew had been sleepy before the film ended. (Andrew sudah mengantuk sebelum filmnya
selesai.)
2. I had been there for an hour before they arrived. (Saya sudah berada di sana selama satu jam
sebelu mereka tiba.)

NEGATIVE:
He
She
It adjective
They + had not + been + adverb
We noun
I
You

e.g.:
1. Michelle had not been hungry when we bought her some snakcs. (Michelle belum lapar
ketika kami belikan makanan kecil.)
 2. I had not been abroad before I went to Singapore last month. (Saya belum pernah ke luar
negeri sebelum saya pergi ke Singapore bulan yang lalu.)

YES-NO QUESTIONS

he
she
it adjective
Had
+ they + been + adverb ?
Hadn’t
we noun
I
you

e.g.:
1. Had you been here before us?(Apakah kamu sudah pernah kesini sebelu kami?)
2. Hadn’t Patrick been here before? (Apakah Patrick belum pernah kesini sebelumnya?

3. Using “VERB” :

PATTERN :
He
She
It
They + had + V3
We
I
You

e.g.:
1. Andrew had finished his project before the teacher asked him to collect it. (Andrew
sudah menyelesaikan proyeknya sebelum guru memintanya untuk mengumpulkan tugas
itu.)
2. Andrew and Chelsea had submitted their assignments before the deadline. (Andrew dan
Chelsea sudah mengumpulkan tugasnya sebelum batas waktunya.)

NEGATIVES
PATTERN :
He
She
It
had not
They + + V3
hadn’t
We
I
You

e.g.:
1. Matthew hadn’t finished his homework even though the teacher had reminded him
many times. (Matthew belum menyelesaikan PRnya meskipun guru sudah
mengingatkannya beberapa kali.)
 2. I hadn’t transferred the money because I had no time to go to the bank. (Saya belum
mentransfer uangnya karena saya tidak punya waktu untuk pergi ke bank)

YES-NO QUESTIONS
PATTERN :
he
she
it
Had
+ they + V-3 ?
Hadn’t
we
I
you

e.g.:
1. Had you returned the money before the debt-collector came yesterday? (Apakah kamu
sudah mengembalikan uangnya sebelum penagih hutang datang kemarin?
2. Hadn’t they gone home when it started raining? (Apakah mereka belum pulang ketika
hari mulai hujan?)

WH-QUESTIONS : What, Who, Whom, Whose, Where, When, Why, How, How many, How
old, How often, ect.
PATTERN :
What he
Where she
When it
had
How + + they + V-3 ?
hadn’t
How we
many I
etc. you
e.g.:
1. Why hadn’t the security reported to me what had happened before? (Mengapa satpam
belum menyampaikan apa yang sudah terjadi pada saya?)
2. How long had you known each other before you decided to get married? (Sudah berapa
lama kalian saling mengenal satu sama lain sebelum kalian memutuskan untuk
menikah?

PRACTICE 6
Use the prompts to write sentences using the past perfect and the past simple.

1. ……… he …………… (ever, coach) a basketball team before he took on the school team?
2. I couldn’t open the door because I …………… (leave) my keys at home.
3. I saw a mobile phone from the nineties in the museum. It was the biggest mobile phone I
……… ever …………… (see).
4. I tried to learn Russian, but I gave up. It was the most challenging language I …… ever
…………… (study).
5. I went ice-skating last weekend – it was the first time I …………… (try) it.
 6. My parents were musicians. My mum ……. already …………… (start) a band when she
met my dad.
7. She …………… (never, feel) so happy before she met him.
8. Sorry, we …………… (talk) about something else. Could you repeat what you said,
please?
9. The news broke on social media. Everyone ……. already …………… (hear) it when the
news channels reported it.
10. We …………… (meet) long before we started high school.

COMPARATIVE AND SUPERLATIVE : ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS

NOTES:
1. Comparative adjectives and adverbs compare two people or things.
e.g. :
a. Horse-riding is a more challenging activity than riding a bike.
b. In my opinion, a friendship is more important than a football team.
c. My sister is taller than my brother.
d. Sammy runs more quickly than I do.
2. Superlative adjectives and adverbs compare one person or thing in a group with others in
the same group.
e.g. :
a. Nicoline is the best of all the students.
b. Nicoline is the best student in the class.
c. Penabur is one of the best schools in Indonesia.
d. Kim did the project the most carefully of all her friends.
3. Use “too” and “not enough” with adjectives and adverbs.
e.g. :
a. I was too nervous to play with Messi.
b. She is good enough to get in our basketball team.
c. It’s too cold and windy today to go out in the boat.
4. Use “not as---as” with adjectives and adverbs to compare two people or things.
e.g :
a. I wanted to show them that I was as good as they were.
b. I was too nervous to play as well as I usually do.
c. My mobile phone isn’t as good as yours.

5. Adverbs of degree make the comparison stronger (much, far, a lot) or weaker (a bit, a
little, slightly).
e.g. :
I hit the ball much better than I expected.
It’s more difficult to be funny in a foreign language than it is in your own language.
She is slightly careless than I thought before.
 6. Comparisons between clauses or phrases are also possible.
e.g. : It would be simpler to hide my thoughts than to disagree with him.

PATTERN: ADJECTIVES COMPARATIVE SUPERLATIVE

one syllable young younger than the youngest
nice nicer than the nicest
hot hotter than the hottest
one-and-two syllable, pretty prettier than the prettiest
ending with -y
dry drier than the driest
two syllable or longer modern more modern than the most modern
expensive more expensive than the most expensive
dangerous more dangerous than the most dangerous
irregular good better than the best
bad worse than the worst
far farther than the farthest
further than the furthest
many / much more ….. than the most …….
little less …. than the least …….
few fewer than the fewest ……

PRACTICE 1
Complete the second sentence so that it means the same as the first.
e.g.: Bobby isn’t hard-working enough to continue learning Russian.
Bobby is too lazy to continue learning Russian.

1. Air travel is faster that any kind of transport.

Air travel is …………………………………….. of transport.
2. Going to a concert is more exciting than going to the cinema.
Going to the cinema isn’t …………………………………….. going to a concert.
3. Her singing was so good that she won the contest.
She sang …………………………………….. to win the contest.
4. I am better at Math than any other subject.
Maths is my ……………………………………..
5. James isn’t as tall as Ben.
James is …………………………………….. Ben
6. Jojo didn’t use to be confident.
Jojo is …………………………………….. she used to be.
7. Mobile phones are much cheaper now than a few years ago.
Mobile phones used to be …………………………………….. a few years ago.
 8. My friend Sarah tries harder than everyone else in her acting classes.
No one tries …………………………………….. Sarah in the acting classes.
9. The comedian’s jokes were less funny than they were previously.
The comedian’s jokes weren’t …………………………………….. there were previously.
10. This restaurant has better food than any other restaurant in the area.
The restaurant has …………………………………….. in this area.
11. Jenna is too short to ride on the rollercoaster
Jenna is …………………………………….. to ride on the rollercoaster.
12. These blue socks are wetter than the black ones.
The black socks are …………………………………….. the blue ones.
13. The weather here is usually better in the afternoon than in the morning.
The weather here is usually …………………………………….. in the morning ……………. in the
afternoon.
14. This ring is not big enough to fit on my finger.
This ring is …………………………………….. to fit on my finger.
15. Tony’s arms are stronger than Kyle’s arms.
Kyle’s arms are …………………………………….. Tony’s arms.

PRACTICE 2
Find the mistakes and correct the sentences.
e.g. : Colin Firth is more tall than Tom Cruise.
Colin Firth is taller than Tom Cruise .

1. He is one of the more interesting characters I’ve ever seen on screen.

_______________________________________________________________________
2. My little sister is funnyer than my older brother.
_______________________________________________________________________
3. Star Wars is further more exciting than Game of Thrones.
_____________________________________________________________________
4. The Hobbit is one of the worse books we read last year.
_____________________________________________________________________
5. This is the nice book I have ever read.
_____________________________________________________________________
PRACTICE 3
Complete the sentences with “too or enough” and the adjectives in the brackets.
e.g. : I’d like a larger bed, but my room is …not big enough …. (big)

1. I want to learn to drive, but I’m ………………………………. (scared)

2. I was planning to give something to charity, but nothing I have is ……………………………….
(valuable).
3. I’d like to buy designer clothes, but they are ………………………………. (expensive).
4. My brother never lends me money because he is ………………………………. (mean)
5. My parents won’t let me have a motorbike. They say it is ……………………………….
(dangerous)

PRACTICE 4
Complete the sentences and questions with one word in each gap.
e.g. : This bed isn’t big …….. enough …….. for two people.

1. Are you ………………… careful with money than your friends?

2. I’m bad at football, but I’m even ………………… at tennis.
3. Black skinny jeans are the ………………… fashionable trousers this season.
4. Shopping with friends is better ………………… shopping alone.
5. This is ………………… biggest shopping centre in our town.
6. Deni jackets are as popular ………………… leather jackets this season.

PRACTICE 5
Complete the text with the correct comparative or superlative forms of the adjectives in the
brackets.

Lego is one of the ………………………………. (simple) toys available, but according to may people it is
also one of the ………………………………. (good) in the world. Most teens and adults remember Lego
from their childhood. Lego allows children to be ………………………………. (creative) than many other
toys – there are 915 million ways to combine just six Lego bricks! The word Lego comes from the
phrase “leg godt” which means “play well” in Danish. Check out ………………………………. (amazing)
Lego facts:
▪ A pile of 50,000,000,000 Lego bricks would reach ………………………………. (far) than the
moon.
▪ In 2003, the yellow skin colour of soe Lego mini figures was changed to a
………………………………. (authentic) skin colour.
▪ On average, there are 62 Lego bricks for everyone on Earth!
▪ Approximately seven Lego sets are sold every second, and Lego films and computer games
have made the product even ………………………………. (popular) than in the past.