English Course.

B2 level

VERB TENSES
PAST SIMPLE AND CONTINUOUS. PAST PERFECT

PAST SIMPLE

Affirmative
I/he/she/it/we/you/they + worked / wrote (regular or irregular)
Negative
I/he/she/it/we/you/they + did not (didn’t) + work / give
Interrogative
Did + I/he/she/it/we/you/they + work / give?

Spelling of regular past participle:

- Most regular verbs add -ed:

Work → worked
Start → started
- Verbs ending in -e add -d.
Hope → hoped
Decide → decided
- Verbs ending in one stressed vowel + one consonant (except w or y), double the
consonant and add -ed.
Shop → shopped
Plan → planned
Refer → referred
Regret → regretted
In British English, -l is doubled in the past after a short vowel even if the vowel is not
stressed. For example: Travel → travelled

- Verbs ending in consonant + y, change y to i and add -ed.

Hurry → hurried
Cry → cried
Study → studied

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USE

We use the past simple:

- for finished past actions.

They got married last year.
I didn’t have time to do my homework.
- to describe habits and routines in the past.
Leonardo got up early every day.

PAST CONTINUOUS

Affirmative
I/he/she/it + was + working
We/you/they + were + working
Negative
I/he/she/it + was not (wasn’t) + working
We/you/they + were not (weren’t) + working
Interrogative
Was + I/he/she/it + working?
Were + we/you/they + working?

USE

- We use the past continuous to describe an action in progress at a specific time in the
past.
A: What were you doing at six o’clock last night?
B: I was watching TV. It was a cold night and it was raining.

PAST PERFECT

Affirmative
I/he/she/it/we/you/they + had + past participle (regular or irregular)
Negative
I/he/she/it/we/you/they + had not (hadn’t) + past participle (regular or irregular)
Interrogative
Had + I/he/she/it/we/you/they + past participle (regular or irregular)?

2
USE

- We use the past perfect simple to describe or refer to a past event which happens
before another event in the past.
When they turned on the TV, the match had finished.

EXERCISES

a. Combine the two sentences. Use the verb in bold in the past continuous or
past perfect.
E.g. Sarah had a siesta from 3.00 to 5.00. Peter picked up the tickets at 4.00.
Peter picked up the tickets when Sarah was having a siesta.

1. They watched TV from 7.00 until 9.00. I arrived at 7.30.

When I arrived, they __________ TV.
2. He left the office at 7.00. She phoned him at 8.00.
When she phoned him, he _________ the office.
3. I studied for the exam the night before. The exam didn’t go well.
The exam didn’t go well although I __________ the night before.
4. He cycled to work this morning. In the middle of his journey, he had an accident.
When he __________ to work this morning, he had an accident.
5. He only had five lessons. He passed his driving test.
When he passed his driving test, he __________ (only) five lessons.

b. Complete with the past simple, past continuous, or past perfect.

E.g. We didn’t realize that we had been there before. (not realize, be)

1. A: How __________? (the accident, happen)

B: He _________ back from Manchester when he __________ a tree. (drive, hit)
2. I _________ cooking the meal when they _________ me to say they couldn’t
come. (already/start, call)
3. When I got home I was really tired, so I _________ a shower and _________ to
bed. (have, go)
4. I arrived too late. The concert _________ and my friends _________ home.
(finish, go)

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 5. The driver __________ control of his car because he __________ on his mobile.
(lose, talk)

c. Complete the text with the correct form of the verb in brackets: past simple,
past continuous, or past perfect.

My exam nightmare

I _______________ (wake up) on the morning of the maths exam with a

horrible feeling in my stomach. I knew that I _________ (not study) enough
the night before and that I was going to fail.
When I left home it _________ (rain) and there was a lot of traffic.
I _________ (arrive) five minutes late and the exam _________
(already/start). I sat down quickly and looked at the questions. I _________
(not can) answer any of them! It was the most difficult exam the teacher
_________ (ever / give) us.
I _________ (sit) next to one of my friends called Sophie and I could see that
she _________ (write) very quickly. She was great at maths. Suddenly I had
an idea. I _________ (look) at the teacher, Mr Everitt. He _________ (stand)
by the window and he _________ (not look) at us. I wrote a message on a
piece of paper and _________ (throw) it to Sophie. It said ‘I need help’.
Sophie _________ (already/finish) the exam. She copied the answers on a
piece of paper and quickly passed it to me.
The following day Mr Everitt _________(call) us both to his room. We saw
that he_________ (hold) my exam paper, and Sophie’s, too. He told us that
we _________ (both/fail) the exam. We _________ (write) exactly the same
answers for every question, including several wrong answers.