Past simple rules for using auxiliary verbs. What have we learned? Negative form -

You can express the past tense in English in different ways. Each of them has its own patterns, having comprehended which, you will be able to easily convey the events of the past in English. One of the most "in demand" times is Past Simple.

It is very easy to draw a parallel here with the Russian language. Everything that we are accustomed to attributing to the past is expressed by the Past Simple (Indefinite). That is why it is called simple time, which conveys ordinary actions and isolated facts.

Formation of Past Simple in English

As in any tense, all points of contact converge in the form of the verb and the use of the auxiliary verb. IN affirmative sentence the predicate takes either ending ed (if the verb is correct), or it is used second form (2nd column of irregular verbs): V ed or V 2(with all faces the same) . To form questions or negatives, you need an auxiliary verb did. In the first case, it takes place before the subject, in the second - after + the particle not. It is important to note that the predicate verb returns to its primary person, i.e. infinitive without to. It is easy to see how the Past Simple is formed using a table.

Not only in colloquial speech, but also in writing they often use shortened form.

Important nuances

The first thing I want to note is the verb to be. In principle, it is incorrect, therefore it has a second form (was - singular / were - plural). In affirmative sentences it is used like this, but negative and interrogative sentences are formed without did: wasn’t, weren’t. Although it is semantic, no auxiliary verb or other semantic verb is used with it. paste simple.

We were at home last night. — We were at home last night.

I wasn't the best student. — I was not the best student.

Were you in a new club? — Have you been to the new club?

The pronunciation of the ending ed changes. It all depends on the letters next to each other:

after voiceless consonants - [t] - worked

after voiced consonants and vowels [d] - used, enjoyed

after t/d — — studied, landed

Features of writing. The second form of the verb will have to be learned by heart, there is no way to escape from it. And with the addition of ed, not everything is easy either. When adding this ending to a word, sometimes there are some changes that are important to know:

If the word ends in "y", and in front of her is consonant, then “y” changes to “i”+ ed: try-tried, hurry - hurried. But: pl a y-pla y ed.
If a verb has a letter at the end "e", then when adding ed, one of the “e” disappears: change - changed, dance - danced.
If the verb ends in I agree(except c, w, z) or — er, -ur, and in front of her short vowel, then the last letter is doubled: stop - stopped, plan-planned, omit-omitted, occur - occurred.
If the latter is « l", then it is also duplicated: travel - travelled, quarel - quarelled.
Ending with "With", the verb in this case adds and "k": panic - panicked.

Cases of use

The rules for Past Simple (Indefinite) are quite easy to understand. And there are not many of them.

1. First of all, I would like to highlight isolated events in the past, facts. This way we emphasize what happened and simply state the fact. Vivid clues of this time are words such as ago (back), last year/month/week (last year, month, week), yesterday (yesterday), the other day (the other day), in 1998, in questions with when .

Last night my friends celebrated their anniversary. — Last night my friends celebrated their anniversary.

There wasn’t any rain in September. — There was no rain in September.

2. Alternately listed events in the past. The chronological order is very important: for example, got up, washed, had breakfast.

The dog picked up the bone and went away. — The dog picked up the bone and ran away.

She woke up, opened the window and switched on the TV. “She woke up, opened the window and turned on the TV.

3. Regular, constantly repeated actions in the past we will also express it in Past Indefinite: rarely, every week, often, always. You can immediately tell that these are pointers Present Simple, and how to find out. This is always clear from the context, whether the action refers to the present or the past. Just think about the proposal, don’t rush when you see the treasured clue.

Every week he took his son out. “Every week he took his son for a walk.

When I was a little boy I usually went to bed at 8. - When I was a little boy, I went to bed at 8 o'clock.

Sometimes there is confusion between the last function and the phrase used to do smth (be used to do smth). You can study this construction in detail in the article “Used to turnover”.

Even more examples of cases of using this tense can be found in the article “Examples of Past Simple”.

Comparison of times

The grammar of Past Indefinite Tense is quite simple. You will easily understand the formation and usage. But when comparing different past tenses, difficulties arise. Let's figure it out.

Past Simple	Past Continuous	Past Perfect	Past Perfect Continuous	Present Perfect
A single action in the past, a fact, just happened	Long-term action in the past, the exact period when it occurred is indicated	An action ended before a moment or another action in the past, what matters is that it ended	The action lasted a certain time period in the past	The action is not just completed, its consequences are visible in the present, and they are the ones that matter
I wrote a new novel last week.	I was writing a new novel the whole week.	I had written a new novel by New Year.	I had been writing a new novel for a year.	I have written a new novel, and now I go to the editor.
I wrote a new novel on last week.	I've been writing a new novel all week.	I wrote a new novel for the New Year.	I've been writing a new novel for a year.	I wrote a new novel, and now I'm going to the editor.

So, let's summarize. According to Past rules Simple (Indefinite) verb changes its form, and negation and question are formed using did. When performing exercises and tests, comparing past simple (indefinite) with other tenses, remember that the first of them tells, informs, lets you know that the action happened sometime in the past. All the time frames are a little blurry, the exact time is never given.

In the article we will analyze the temporal features of the English and Russian languages, namely, we will compare the formation of the past tense in these two languages. We will analyze in detail what tense is Past Simple (paste simple) in English. We will definitely understand how sentences are constructed, what rules and exceptions exist. The topic is quite logical and simple, if you don’t get distracted when explaining it.

Past tense in languages

We should start with the fact that the past tense in Russian and English has a fundamental semantic difference. In our language there is one thing. For us it is absolutely natural and goes without saying: “ he read a book yesterday», « we called two days ago», « by three o'clock I was ready to go», « they walked from four to eight in the evening", etc. All these actions were performed in the past and were carried out up to the present moment.

This is enough for us to understand that we are dealing with the past tense. In English there are four varieties of past tense. The given example sentences are used in different types of tense forms of the past tense.

Note: Varieties of the past tense

So, to make the picture clearer, let’s list the types of past tenses - Past Tenses (in translation past - “past, past”, tenses - “times”):

Past Simple - past simple.
Past Continuous - past continuous.
Past Perfect - past perfect.
Past Perfect Continuous- past perfect in process.

All these times are past. To make the picture clearer, let’s look at the difference in additional specific sentences:

Past Simple: " He read a book yesterday" What is important for us is that the action happened sometime in the past - “yesterday”. It doesn't matter whether it was in the morning or in the evening. The main thing is that the action happened.
Past Continuous: " Yesterday at two o'clock in the afternoon he was reading a book" This time tells us about a certain action at a specific moment in the past, not just “yesterday”, but “yesterday at two o’clock in the afternoon.” The action took place at a specific moment.
Past Perfect: " By two o'clock in the afternoon he had already finished reading the novel" Here the action took place in the past and was completed before two o'clock. In other words, an action occurred before some other action (or time) in the past.
And finally, Past Perfect Continuous: “ He read a novel yesterday from three to six in the evening" In this tense, the emphasis is on the completion of an action in the past, lasted for a long period and ended before a certain time in the past.

At first glance, it is somewhat confusing and difficult. But when studying a specific time and with the necessary training, everything becomes clear.

We are now specifically interested in Past Simple (past simple) in English. Let's consider it.

Past Simple: usage cases

The Past Simple tense (paste simple) in English characterizes actions that were performed sometime in the past. Typically, such sentences indicate certain words (perhaps they are simply implied): yesterday or two hours ago, last week or last Friday, last year or month, a couple of years or five years ago, and so on.

Actions that took place in the past and follow each other also characterize this time. For example: " She woke up, took a shower, got ready, had breakfast and went to work.».

This tense is also used when it means habitual actions in the past, but no longer relevant now: " In my distant childhood, I often loved to visit my grandmother».

Now let's move on to constructing sentences and touch on those defined in the Past Simple ( paste simple) rules.

Affirmative (narrative) sentences in the Past Simple

So, to construct an affirmative sentence in the Past Simple, you need to know the following: in English there are regular and irregular verbs. Let's figure it out:

Regular verbs are those that obey certain laws of language, for example, the rule of forming the past tense. For all regular, one might say, “obedient” verbs, it is uniform and obligatory: to (without a particle to) to form a form in the past tense, the ending “ is added -ed" or " -d”.
Irregular verbs are, in simple terms, “naughty” verbs that do not obey the general above principle of forming the verb form in the Past Simple (paste simple). Rules don't apply here - there are exceptions that need to be remembered! The difficulty is that there are many irregular verbs. They are all reflected in special grammar tables in textbooks or in regular English-Russian dictionaries. Next to the irregular verb there are two more forms. We will be interested in the second form (or the second column in textbook tables).

When constructing sentences, remember the word order. At the initial stage, try to start with the subject, followed by the predicate, and only then - all the others. This is not necessary, but it is advisable, since observing this point will help develop the habit of not losing significant parts of the statement and knowing exactly where to start building a phrase.

Negative and interrogative sentences in the Past Simple

To construct negative and interrogative sentences in the Past Simple (paste simple) in English, you need to know that there is an auxiliary verb did. This is a helping verb. It helps to construct negative and interrogative statements.

In a negative sentence, the subject comes first (in first place), then the verb helper did with negation not(in abbreviated form - didn't), then - the predicate in the initial form without to and the rest of the sentence.

When constructing a question, the order of words is as follows: first, if there is one, the question word is put, then the helping verb did, then - subject, predicate, in initial form without to, and the rest of the sentence. The example in the table proposed in the article shows this more clearly.

To fully understand and consolidate the acquired knowledge, it is necessary to complete this task. This can be a variety of tasks: put the verb in the required form, translate a sentence from Russian into English, insert a suitable verb from those suggested, etc. The main thing is that you need to carry them out with awareness, in which case it will be very easy to construct your speech in the past tense.

The article contains a complete table. Analyze it again in detail and carefully. Two accents - regular/irregular verbs and the auxiliary verb did.

Note: types of simple Simple (simple) tense

It must be repeated that if you grasp the principle of using tenses in English, and it is unique and simple, then the entire table of tenses in English will become understandable and transparent.

For example, simple translated as “ simple" There are three Simple tenses in English: Present Simple, Past Simple, Future Simple (present simple and past simple, as well as future simple), that is, present simple, past simple and future simple. Each of these types of tense is characterized by its own construction of sentences and its own characteristics, which are presented in the table.

It will also be extremely useful to perform exercises on comparison and construction of sentences in this line of the Simple direction (for example, past simple and future simple, present simple and future simple). And the more practice, the better!

We hope that this article was useful and informative for you.

In this article we will look at the second simple tense form in English - The Past Simple (Indefinite) Tense.It is a tense form of a verb, which is used to express single actions that took place in the past and the time for which has expired. In certain contexts where a past tense verb is used, you may notice the following marker words:

yesterday (yesterday);
last week/month/year (last week, last month/year);
two days ago (two days ago);
in 1917 (in 1917).

For example:

I watched my favorite film yesterday.– Yesterday I watched my favorite film.
My parents bought a new car last week. Last week my parents bought a new car.
The First World War began in 1914.– The First World War began in 1914.

Marker words can be used both at the end of a sentence and at the beginning. For example:

Yesterday I walked with my friends.– Yesterday I went out for a walk with my friends.
In 988 Christianity was adopted in Russia.– In 988, Christianity was adopted in Rus'.

Please note that in the simple past tense the verbs change their form. According to the method of forming the forms of the simple past tense, all verbs are divided into regular and irregular.

Regular verbs– verbs formed by adding the suffix –ed to the base of the infinitive. The suffix –ed is pronounced [d], after voiceless consonants (except t) it is pronounced [t], after t and d it is pronounced . For example:

The baby stopped crying. – The baby stopped crying.

For irregular verbs There is a special table called “Table of Irregular Verbs”. You can view it here (). The table of irregular verbs consists of three forms. Let's look at some irregular verbs as an example:

Our team won the football competition two days ago.– Two days ago our team won the football competition.

We have analyzed the main features affirmative form simple past tense verbs. Negative form of verbs in The Past Simple Tense is formed using the auxiliary verb did and the negation not, which are placed before the semantic verb in the form of an infinitive without the particle to. Just like in the form of the simple present tense (The Present Simple Tense), the abbreviated form didn’t is used in speech and writing. For example:

We didn't go to the sea last summer.– We didn’t go to the sea last summer.
They didn't know anything about that story.“They knew nothing about this story.”

The interrogative form of verbs in the simple past tense is formed using the auxiliary verb did, which is placed after the subject, and the subject is followed by a semantic verb in the form of the infinitive without the particle to. At the same time, the tone of voice at the last stressed syllable supply increases. For example:

Did you see him yesterday? – Did you see him yesterday?
Did the pupils visit the museum last week?– Did the students visit the museum last week?

The answers to the questions in these examples are identical, as in the case of interrogative form simple past tense. The answers will look like this: Yes, I did or No, I didn’t.

Using The Past Simple Tense

designation of events, actions, situations that occurred at a certain time in the past and are not related to the present: Last summer we ofte went to the river.— Last summer we often went to the river;
designation of completed actions in the past: Yasterday I wrote you a letter.- Yesterday I wrote you a letter;
designation of habits in the past: My sister liked to play with dolls when she was small.— My sister loved to play with dolls as a child;
denoting a fact that happened once in the past: Mary telephoned an hour ago. — Maria called an hour ago;
description of life events of people who have already died: Pushkin wrote lots of stories for children.— Pushkin wrote many fairy tales for children;
formulating polite questions and requests: I wondered if you could give me a lift(a more polite request than I wonder if...). — I wanted to know if you could give me a ride.

Summary table of tense formation The Past Simple Tense

Formation of The Past Simple Tense in sentences

Affirmative		Negative		Interrogative
I	spoke	I	didn't speak	Did	I	speak
You	worked	You	didn't work		you	work
We		We			we
They		They			they
He		He			he
She		She			she
It		It			it

To summarize, I would like to note that the difference between the simple past tense and the simple present is that actions occur once in the past and are not repeated. The time in which these actions were performed has expired, and the actions themselves are in no way connected with the present. In English grammatical meaning verbs in simple past tense coincides with the meaning of verbs in the past tense of both imperfect and perfect forms in the Russian language. Read about the last simple tense form of the verb in English in the following article.

Past Simple is called the simple past tense, but for many it is such a dark forest that they do not know how to approach it. We are sure this is not about you, but still... Why do we (or rather, the English) need this Past Simple Tense? Past Simple (otherwise, Past Indefinite) is pronounced like past simple. The rules of the Past simple are simple: we will soon learn when the past simple is used, how the past simple is formed, why it is necessary to use the Past Simple, rules and examples of the functioning of this tense in the text. Imagine the situation: you are telling a friend what you did last summer. And we went there, and we were there, and we saw that. How can I tell all this in English? You can’t build barricades out of perfect forms, right? This is what the Past Simple is needed for.

Past Simple Tense: rules of use in English

So, let's take a closer look at the Past Simple - when is this tense used?

An action that you (or someone else) has performed regularly in the past. How often is not important. At least every minute, at least once in a millennium. The main thing is that the action was repeated from time to time in the past. Like here: He often visited us (often visited), when we lived there.
A constant sign of an object or a characteristic of a person in the past. What was this object or person once like? For example: Jane looked much better (looked much better), when I saw her last time.
A chain of sequential actions in the past. Often found in fairy tales like “grandmother for grandfather, grandfather for turnip,” i.e. where the actions of the characters are described step by step. A chain of simple actions occurs in our everyday life. Take a look: I entered the hall, switched on the light, opened the wardrobe, and then quickly closed it. He entered, turned on the light, opened the closet - these are sequential actions, very little time passed between them. There is no point in complicating the sentence and trying to convey this chain of actions in any other way than Past Simple.
One-time action in the past. Yes, yes, this is exactly about how you went to a resort 10 years ago, and now share your memories. Something that once happened some time ago (no matter yesterday or 140 years ago) is conveyed through the Past Simple.

Pitfall:

What to do with cultural heritage? For example, Shakespeare wrote such and such a work in such and such a year. After all, we are using the results of Shakespeare’s work, and we are doing it now - in this case, the Past Simple is often confused with the present perfect, which precisely describes the result in the present. However, the simple paste rule here is quite strict. Any invention, any work once written is a fact in the past. And facts, especially indicating the exact date, are the sphere of the Simple times group.

Past Simple: education

How is the Past Simple formed? And it's very simple. It's not called simple for nothing. Past Simple, formation: V2 (second form of the verb). Do you remember that all English verbs can be divided into regular and irregular?

Past Simple: rules for forming the simple past of irregular verbs

Irregular verbs live their own lives: they have three forms, all three need to be known by heart. To get the Past Simple, we use the second form (V2) of the irregular verb.

For example:

Buy - bought - bought Read - read - read Cut - cut - cut Lie - lay - lain A list of irregular verbs is at the end of any dictionary or reference book. Ideally, this list should migrate from the reference book to your head. Fortunately, there are not many irregular verbs. Relatively. But all other verbs that are not on the list of irregular ones are called regular. And everything is very easy with them. Past Simple: rules for forming the simple past of regular verbs Regular verbs in the Past Simple take on the ending -ed or -d. We add it to the stem of the infinitive.

For example:

To kick - he kicked (kick - he kicked) To look - he looked (look - he looked)

If the stem of the infinitive already ends in e, then only -d is added:

To dance - he danced (to dance - he danced) To invite - he invited (to invite - he invited) That's all! After all, it’s not for nothing that the Past Simple is called simple, right? But there are also some pitfalls.

Nuance No. 1

If a word ends with the letter y, then it must be changed to i and only then added the ending -ed. We do this manipulation only and exclusively when y is preceded by a consonant.

Compare:

To fly - he flied To obey - he obeyed In the case of obey before y - the vowel e. Well, let’s put the ending -ed and be glad that you don’t need to change anything!

Nuance No. 2

Did you like it? Then here's your second point. If the verb ends with the combination: short vowel sound + consonant letter, then the consonant is usually doubled. To plan - he planned This is necessary in order to maintain a closed syllable. After all, if we do not double n in the word planned, we will get an open syllable, and in open syllable reads differently. The end result will be a completely different word! Therefore, do not forget to double the consonant where necessary. But look at these examples: To fear - he feared To look - he looked There is no need to double anything here, because the consonants are not preceded by short vowels; nothing can affect their pronunciation. In British English, the l is always doubled at the end of a word: To quarrel - we quarreled But in American English such a metamorphosis does not occur. To quarrel - we quarrel How to read verbs correctly ending -ed While putting a verb into the Past Simple is relatively easy, sometimes reading it is not very easy. Try not to neglect correct pronunciation, otherwise it will be very difficult for a foreigner to understand you.

What about questions and denials?

To form a question or a negative, we need the auxiliary verb do. Without it, alas, neither a question can be made nor a denial can be formed. The auxiliary verb do in the Past Simple will have the form did. In a negative sentence, did is placed after the subject and takes on the negative particle not.

Negation in Past Simple: rule of formation

Subject + did not + predicate (infinitive) Tom did not eat porridge. Didn't = didn't. Didn't is a shortened form of did not. In spoken language you are most likely to hear this form. Tom did not eat porridge = Tom didn’t eat porridge. Mark did not come yesterday = Mark didn’t come yesterday

Question in Past Simple: rule of formation

In a question, did will appear in the first position. The pattern of a general question in the past simple would be: DID + subject + predicate (infinitive)? Did Tom eat porridge? The answer to this question can be complete, but is usually short: - Yes, he did. / No, he didn’t.

< strong>Pitfall: Very common mistake when forming questions and negations in the Past Simple: using V2 instead of the infinitive. We have a good understanding of how the past simple is formed - using the ending -ed (for regular verbs) and V2 for irregular ones. Having understood this, we begin to put the second form of the verb everywhere, but in questions and negations this is superfluous! The auxiliary verb do has already taken over the functions of the past simple and turned into did (remember that do is an irregular verb: do-did-done. Accordingly, its V2 is did). Did ALREADY shows the past simple tense. There is simply no need to do any additional manipulations with the semantic verb (predicate)! Did already take care of everything!

Special questions

These are questions that begin with a special question word. Question words: What what? Where where? Who's who? Why why? When when? Whom to whom? How how? Special questions are not as difficult as they seem. If the circuit simple question looks like this: DID + subject + predicate (infinitive)? Then the scheme of a special question looks like this: Question word + DID + subject + predicate (infinitive)? We simply put a question word at position zero - that’s all! The rest of the word order remains unchanged. The English language would not be English if there were not some exception here. It exists. With the question words Who (who?) and What? (what?), if we ask a question to the subject, this scheme does not work. True, it is even simpler. We simply put who or what in place of the subject! That's all! The predicate remains in the past simple. In practice it looks like this: Mary ate ice-cream yesterday. (Mary ate ice cream yesterday.) Who ate ice-cream yesterday? (Who ate ice cream yesterday?) Important: This scheme with who only works when we ask a question to the subject. If we ask a question to a direct object, then the scheme will be standard. Compare: Tom saw Mary two days ago. Who saw Mary two days ago? The question is asked to the subject (Tom). Who is in first position, no auxiliary verb is required. Let's move on. Let's first ask a general question (the answer to which will be “yes” or “no”): Did Tom see Mary two days ago? (put did first) And now special question with who, but not to the subject, but to the direct object (Mary): Who did Tom see two days ago? Since we are not asking the question to the subject, it means, like any interrogative word, who appears in the zero position, did remains in the first position and further according to the standard scheme.)

Past Simple Markers

Markers are our assistants, clue words that help us understand when we need the Past Simple. If we notice such a word in a sentence, this is a very eloquent hint that we need to use the simple past tense.

Okay, we know the markers, but where to put them in a sentence? After all, the structure of an English sentence is quite rigid... Markers containing the words last, every, ago, as a rule, are placed on last place in a sentence: I met Helen three months ago. Emma spent three weeks in Paris last year. Markers often, never, usually, rarely, always and similar ones usually come before the verb: I never saw you working. Tom and I always spent holidays together. Important: If the predicate is not an action verb, but a verb to be, then these markers are placed after it: John was often tired. Marker yesterday can occur at the beginning of a sentence or at the end: Yesterday I bought a new fur coat. I bought a new fur coat yesterday. But sometimes In general, he can stand wherever he wants. Or rather, where you want: I went to Paris sometimes, but always felt uncomfortable there. Sometimes I went to Paris, but always felt uncomfortable there. What to do if there are no bullets in the sentence? How we work with English sentence? First of all, we look at the markers. If you have an ago or last marker, then already at the stage of your first acquaintance with the sentence, without even translating it, you understand what tense you need to use: Past Simple. If there are no obvious markers in the sentence, then we move on to the next stage: translating the sentence. And here you may notice some clues.

For example:

Year indication: in 1956, in 2007. My grandpa died in 2007. Month indication: in August, in September. I caught a cold in January. The word during- for some time. Attention: during can only be used with nouns denoting a certain time period! During summer, during the weekend, during our meeting. Mary was in London during the winter. Marker for. You need to be more careful with this marker. This is one of the most striking indicators of the Present Perfect time. However, if the action has already completed and there is no connection with the present, then for clearly indicates the Past Simple. Compare: I have lived here for 13 years. I lived here for 13 years. (And I still live or am about to leave.) I lived in London for 13 years, but then moved to New York. I lived in London for 13 years and then moved to New York. (No connection with the present; I lived once and then moved). Clarification with when I pierced my tongue when I was 16. This is a fact of biography from the past. Which means Past Simple. If the emphasis is not on the fact, but on the process, then a different tense, Past Continuous, will be used: I was eating when my mom called me. Emphasis on the process - I was eating when my mother called me. Pay attention to the second part of the sentence: when my mom called me. Here we use the past simple again. Why? Because a shorter action or an action that interrupts the process (expressed in this case through the Past Continuous) requires the use of the Past Simple. Translate the sentence correctly and see how the semantic accents are placed! Past Simple is primarily a fact in the past. If an action used to happen regularly, but is no longer happening now, the construction used to + infinitive is used. Using this expression, we can designate habits of the past that we do not have now, or qualities and properties that are now absent. Take a look: I used to be good at drawing, but now I cannot draw even a straight line. I used to draw well, but now I can’t even draw a straight line. The translation of sentences of this type can begin with the words “once upon a time” or “remembered”. She used to be so pretty! I remember she was so pretty! As a synonym used to we can use would + infinitive- but only to indicate actions in the past, not characteristics! My mom would bake the best cookies, when I was a child. Now you know everything about the Past Simple tense and can express your thoughts with ease. To make your English even more beautiful, read our other articles about the rules and nuances of English grammar.

What is Past Simple (Past Idefinite)

Past Simple (Past Indefinite) is the simple past tense in English, which is used to convey information about a specific event or action that happened in the past.

The name speaks for itself - this tense form is actually considered the simplest in the ocean of past tenses of the English language. The action could take place in the recent past or the distant past, and its duration, duration or completion does not matter.

Formula education Past Simple

When using correct English verbs:

Subject + verb infinitive without particle « to» + ending -ed.

My grandma danced a lot when she was young.
My granny a lot danced when I was young.

When using irregular English verbs:

Subject + 2 verb form.

Jessica hung out with her foreign mates at the record store last week.
Last week Jessica hanging out with my foreign friends.

Word markers and pointers in the Past Simple

The main indicators of “Past Simple” time include the following words and phrases:

yesterday- yesterday,
last week- last week,
two hours ago- two hours ago,
then- Then,
in 1998- in 1998, etc.

Mom bought that bag by Gucci in 2005.
Ma bought that Gucci bag in 2005.

Yesterday they watched their favorite photos from the past.
Yesterday They watched your favorite photos from the past.

Affirmative sentences in Past Simple

The affirmative sentence in “Past Simple” is constructed quite simply. First comes subject, followed by verb with ending «- ed"if it is correct (regular); or second verb form, if it relates to irregular verbs(irregular verbs). Regardless of the person and number of the English subject, the predicate remains identical for everyone. Past Simple rules and examples can be found in the table below.

Interrogative sentences in Past Simple

To create an interrogative sentence ( interrogative sentence) in “Past Simple”, you just need to put the auxiliary verb “ did", then subject and finally initial form of the semantic verb(i.e. infinitive without the particle “to”).

Negative sentences in Past Simple

As in a regular affirmative sentence, a negative sentence ( negative sentence) you should start with subject. Next we add the auxiliary verb “ did" With negative particle « not»: « did not / didn't", and then we use the infinitive form of the verb without using the particle " to" Voila!

Formula for constructing a negative sentence in the Past Simple

REGULAR VERB		IRREGULAR VERB
I + DIDN'T+ PAINT	I didn't draw	I + DIDN'T + SLEEP	I didn't sleep
You + DIDN'T+ PAINT	You didn't draw	You + DIDN'T + SLEEP	You didn't sleep
She + DIDN'T+ PAINT He + DIDN’T+ PAINT It + DIDN'T+ PAINT	She didn't draw He didn't draw It didn't draw	She + DIDN'T + SLEEP He + DIDN'T + SLEEP It + DIDN'T + SLEEP	She didn't sleep He didn't sleep It didn't sleep
We + DIDN'T + PAINT	We didn't draw	We + DIDN'T + SLEEP	We didn't sleep
You + DIDN'T+ PAINT	You didn't draw	You + DIDN'T + SLEEP	you didn't sleep
They + DIDN'T+ PAINT	They didn't draw	They + DIDN'T + SLEEP	They didn't sleep

Using verbs in the Past Simple

When it comes to the past tense in English, many people probably have a question: “How to use the verb correctly” be"?" To avoid asking such a question, let us recall that this verb has a couple of forms: “ was» / « were» / « been" Since we are talking about “Past Indefinite”, we, accordingly, need the second options based on the rules for constructing this English-speaking tense.

It's time to give a couple of examples " Past Simple» for clarity:

Gee, I don't have any idea where that guy was last time!
My God, I have no idea where was that guy last time!

Their kids were typical sweetums and binged on candies almost every day back in the days.
In the past their children were typical sweet tooths and ate candy almost every day.

Formation of Past Simple in active and passive

When we touch on "Past Simple", it is important to remember that this tense has 2 options. One is used for active voice - time " Past Simple Active" The second is for passive voice - time " Past Simple Passive».

Passive voice:

If used correct verbs in " Past Simple»:

Subject + verb was/were + infinitive verb without particles « to» With ending «- ed».

That seascape was painted by Edward William Cooke in the 19th century.
That seascape was painted by Edward William Cook in the 19th century.

Subject + verb was/were + 3 form verb

Their names were forgotten two decades ago.
Their names were forgotten two decades ago.

Affirmative sentence: "Past Simple Passive" vs. "Past Simple Active":

"Black Widow" was written by Iggy Azalea in 2014.
Iggy Azalea wrote"Black Widow" in 2014.
Iggy Azalea wrote the song "Black Widow" in 2014.

Negative sentence: "Past Simple Passive" vs. "Past Simple Active"

"Cloud Atlas" wasn't directed by Hayao Miyazaki then.
Hayao Miyazaki didn't direct"Cloud Atlas" then.
Hayao Miyazaki was not the director of Cloud Atlas back then.

Interrogative sentence: "Past Simple Passive" vs. Past Simple Active"

Was that mansion built by my ancestors last century?
Did my ancestors build that mansion last century?
My ancestors built that mansion last century?

Uses of Past Simple

Difference between Past Simple and Present Perfect

Past Simple	Present Perfect
The action happened at a certain moment in the past.	The action ended at an indefinite moment, we have the result, but we do not know in what exact period of time the action occurred.
Elizabeth left us yesterday. Elizabeth left us yesterday.	Elizabeth has left for Seoul. Elizabeth went to Seoul.
An action happened at a certain point in the past and cannot be repeated.	The action happened, we have the result on at the moment, and it can be repeated.
We met Princess Diana. We met Princess Diana.	We have spoken to Nicki Minaj. We spoke with Nicki Minaj.
Past Simple - a certain fact in the past, a given that some action took place in the past. We do not know whether it lasted, is still lasting, or has already ended; it just was.	Present Perfect - the specific result of an action at the present moment in time, the action not only happened but also ended. Whether it completed successfully or not will be clear from the context and the words of the markers.

Nota Bene: To understand “Past Simple” once and for all and understand what the difference is between it and “Present Perfect”, do not forget to pay attention to the free online simulator from EnglishDom. There you will not only find an explanation of the grammatical nuances of using these two tenses, but you will also be able to consolidate the learned material in practice.

Conclusion

So we figured out what this strange time “Past Indefinite” is, and also talked about the differences between “Past Simple” and “Present Perfect”. Feel free to use this time in English speaking and share your memories and impressions with friends and colleagues!

We invite you to familiarize yourself with other tenses of the English language

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