PAST

Simple

Continuous

Perfect

SIMPLE - PositiveRegular Irregular

stopped verb to be

laughed Verb to have

happened did

arrived went

reached made

tried thought

called left

lived taught

SIMPLE - NegativeRegular Irregular

Did not stopped Did not ate

Did not laughed Did not fell

Did not happened Did not spoke

Did not arrived Did not went

Did not reached Did not made

Did not tried Did not thought

Did not called Did not left

Did not lived Did not taught

SIMPLE - NegativeRegular Irregular

Did not stop Did not eat

Did not laugh Did not fall

Did not happen Did not speak

Did not arrive Did not go

Did not reach Did not make

Did not try Did not think

Did not call Did not leave

Did not live Did not teach

SPOT AN ERROR

The joke was NOT funny. So, I did NOT laugh.

They were NOT scared of ghosts. So, they did entered the ghost house at the fun fair.

Underline and correct the error/s

Yesterday, I felt very sleepy in class. I couldnot concentrated on what the teacher wasteaching. I regretted that I did not had mybreakfast. I was extremely regretfulled. I didnot have enough energy to stay awake.

Spot the ‘NOT’

When I was 17, I did not mind having extraclasses at school. The teachers were verycommitted that they held the extra classes for usduring the afternoon and evening preparationclasses. I could not imagine if I had the heart tosleep during the class while knowing that theteachers themselves had sacrificed their time tohelp us out. I also never forgot that my aim wasto do well in the examination. That was why Istayed strong throughout my final year of school.When I got my result, I did not regret a singlesecond of my time being at that school.

PAST - continuous

Used for an action we were in the middle of

Verb to be + (verb + ing)

I was walking

She was joking

You were searching

They were drinking

PAST CONTINUOUSvs

PAST SIMPLE

SIMPLE CONTINUOUS

For a complete action in the past

For an action we were in the middle of

I wrote a letter I was writing a letter

I drove I was driving

They walked They were walking

We did our homework We were doing our homework

Continuous vs Complete

We were driving home when we saw the crash = We were in the middle of our journey

I was eating banana fritters at the back when the teacher called my name = In the middle of eating

Ida and Hani were sleeping when the teacher came in = In the middle of sleeping

PAST CONTINUOUS - negative

• I was not helping him at that time.

• She was not sleeping.

• They were not coming.

• We were not singing.

• It was not jumping.

Verb to be + NOT + (verb+ing)

PAST - Perfect

• The movie had started.

• Had + past participle

Had ate -

Had left

Had done

Had lived

Had came -

During the football training, Henry is telling Amin

about an incident.

I was 16 when the incidenthappened. I had been to Mount Kinabaluwith my parents. I had reached the peak ofthe mountain but I could not see the viewfrom up there. Then, I realised that I hadforgotten my spectacles.

PAST – perfect - negative

• Had not been

• Had not seen

• Had not touched

• Had not eaten

• Had not played

• Had not come

PAST – perfect-continuous

• It had been raining all day

• I had been thinking

• She had been writing

• We had been waiting

• They had been playing

• You had been sleeping

HAD BEEN + (VERB+ING)

Perfect vs perfect continuous

• I had watched the movie several times before. I had been watching the movie since I was a kid.

• I had not watched the movie yet but the girls had been watching it for quite a number of times.

• I had asked her for an outing but she had been creating excuses.

AT A GLANCE…TENSE FORMULA SAMPLE OF SENTENCE

SIMPLE irregular/regular

I helped my mother.I ate what she cooked. I did not help.

CONTINUOUS was/were + (verb+ing) I was helping her.They were cooking.I was not helping her.

PERFECT – SIMPLE

PERFECT -CONTINUOUS

had + past participle

had + been + (verb+ing)

I had helped her.i had not helped her.

I had been helping her.I had not been helping her.

tense?

1. He snatched the money and ran away.

2. During the fire, not many people wereshopping in the store.

3. The cashier found that the thief had taken only RM4.37.

4. After she had baked the cake, she ate it herself.

5. I had been waiting for three hours that I decided to buy something to eat.

Umar told me that three years ago, Hakim had anaccident. The moment Umar visited Hakim, he had been inhospital for three weeks. He had been undergoingtreatment for another three weeks. So, he was in hospitalfor six weeks.

GRAMMAR

PAST TENSE