The simple past expresses an action in the past taking place once, never, several times. It can also be used for actions taking place one after another or in the middle of another action

Duration is not important. The time of the action can be in the recent past or the distant past

 

It is called "simple" because its basic form consists of a single word (like write or writes), in contrast with other present tense forms such as thepresent progressive (is writing) and present perfect (has written).

 

 

 

 

 

 

The simple past is used to  talk about a completed action in a time before now.

 

 

Simple Past has two  forms: 

 

One is adding "ed" to any regular verb

 

FORM 1

[infinitive+ed] 

 

Examples:

• You called Debbie.

• I jumped the rope

• They walked home

 

FORM 2

[infinitive of an irregular verb conjugated in past simple] 

 

Examples:

• You brought Debbie. ( to bring)

• I bought the rope. ( to buy)

• They came home. ( to come)

 

USE 1 Completed Action in the Past

 

Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.

 

Examples:

• I saw a movie yesterday.

• I didn't see a play yesterday.

• Last year, I traveled to Japan.

• Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.

• Did you have dinner last night?

• She washed her car.

• He didn't wash his car.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USE 2 A Series of Completed Actions

 

We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past.

These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.

 

Examples:

• I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.

• He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.

• Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USE 3 Duration in Past

 

The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past.

 

A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.

 

 

Examples:

• I lived in Brazil for two years.

• Shauna studied Japanese for five years.

• They sat at the beach all day.

• They did not stay at the party the entire time.

• We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.

• A: How long did you wait for them?B: We waited for one hour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USE 4 Habits in the Past

 

The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used to."

To make it clear that we are talking about a habit, we often add expressions such as: always, often, usually, never, when I was a child, when I was younger, etc.

 

Examples:

• I studied French when I was a child.

• He played the violin.

• He didn't play the piano.

• Did you play a musical instrument when you were a kid?

• She worked at the movie theater after school.

• They never went to school, they always skipped class.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

USE 5 Past Facts or Generalizations

 

The Simple Past can also be used to describe past facts or generalizations which are no longer true.

 

As in USE 4 above, this use of the Simple Past is quite similar to the expression "used to."

 

Examples:

• She was shy as a child, but now she is very outgoing.

• He didn't like tomatoes before.

• Did you live in Texas when you were a kid?

• People paid much more to make cell phone calls in the past.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ADVERB PLACEMENT

The examples below show the placement for grammar adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.

 

Examples:

• You just called Debbie.