5. SIMPLE PAST (S.

Ps)

Subject Be Auxiliary

I was

You were

We were

They were did

He was

She was

It was

Function: to tell about the activity happened in the past.

Time signals: last______, ______ ago, this morning, in 2010, yesterday.

A: Did you buy that book?

B: Yes, I bought it on a discount.
A: Did you also get a voucher?
B: No, I didn’t get any voucher.

a. Verbal Sentence
(+) S + V2 We studied English yesterday.
(-) S + did not + V1 We did not study English yesterday.
(?) Aux (Did) + S + V1 + ? Did we study English yesterday? • Yes, we did
• No, we did not
b. Nominal Sentence
(+) S + be (was, were) + complement She was sick yesterday.
(-) S + be (was, were) + not + complement She was not sick yesterday.
(?) Be (was, were) + S + complement + ? Was she beautiful yesterday?
Yes, she was/ No, she was not

Let’s Practice
Practice 1A: Which form is correct? Exercise 1B: Use the verbs in the simple past forms.

1. I __a__ a. was b. were 1. They work = They worked

2. We __b__ a. was b. were
2. We arrive = We arrived
3. She __a__ a. was b. were
3. She visits = She visited
4. You __a__ a. got b. getted

Simple Past (S. Ps)

 5. She __a__ a. met b. meted 4. You enjoy = you enjoyed

6. They _a__ a. spent b. spended 5. It carries = it carried

7. It __a__ a. did b. does
6. We cycle = we cycled
8. Santy _a_ a. was b. were
7. They play = they played
9. Ray __a__ a. was b. were
8. She tries = she tried
10. He and I _b_a. was b. were

11. I __B__ a. drinked b. drank 9. He listens = he listened

12. We _B_ a. understanded b. understood 10. I understand = I understood

13. You _A_ a. lived b. liveed

14. Cows _B_a. was b. were

Practice 2: Simple past: regular and irregular verbs

Direction: Write the simple past form of the given verbs.

1 Star Started 16. bring brought

. t:
2 Go: went 17. break Broke
.
3 See: saw 18. eat Ate
.
4 Stan stood 19. watch Watched
. d
5 arri Arrived 20. build Built
. ve
6 Win Won 21. take Took
.
7 have had 22. pay Paid
.
8 mak made 23. leave Left
. e
9 finis finished 24. wear Wore
. h

Simple Past (S. Ps)

 1 feel Felt 25. open Opened
0.
1 fall Feel 26. decide Decided
1.
1 hear heard 27. plan planed
2.
1 sing Sang 28. write Wrote
3.
1 expl Explored 29. teach Taught
4. ore
1 ask asked 30. hold held
5.

Practice 3: Simple past: regular and irregular verbs

Direction: Complete the sentences by using the past tense verbs below. Use each verb only once.

1. Paul shook the soft drink so hard that is sprayed all over his clothes.
2. Carol didn't want to go on vacation with us, so she stayed home alone all week.
3. Since I hurt my knee, I can't go jogging. Yesterday, I swam in the pool for an hour instead.
4. I was terrified just standing over the pool on the high diving board. Finally, I took a deep breath,
held my nose, and jumped into the water.
5. The climber, who was fearful of falling, held the rope tightly in both hands.
6. Johnny pushed Alan down on the floor, and the two boys _fought__ for a few minutes. Neither
boy was hurt.
7. Before Louise started her own company, she taught__ chemistry at the university.
8. It was extremely cold last night, and the water we put out for the cat ____froze___ solid.

9. Before I made my decision, I thought about it for a long, long time.

10. Carlos called your house three times to ask you to go to the movie with us, but there was
no answer, so we went without you.
11. My car wouldn't start this morning, so I rode my bicycle to work.
12. I needed money to pay my tuition at the university, so sold I my motorcycle to my cousin.

Practice 4: Irregular Verbs

Simple Past (S. Ps)

Direction: Complete the sentences with the simple past of the given irregular verbs. There may be
more than one possible completion.

1. Sue drank/had a cup of coffee before class this morning.

2. We ate a delicious dinner at a Mexican restaurant last night.
3. When it to rain yesterday afternoon, I shut all of the windows in the apartment.
4. The phone rang eight times before anybody answered it.
5. My brother and his wife came to our apartment for dinner last night.
6. The architectural firm that I work for designed that building. My brother's construction
Company built it. They took two years to complete it.
7. When Alan slipped on the icy sidewalk yesterday, he feel down and __hurt____ his back.
His back is very painful today.
8. Alice called the police yesterday because someone stole her bicycle while she was in
the library studying. She's very angry.
9. There was a cool breeze last night. I opened the window, but Colette got cold and froze it.
10. Ted drove his car across Canada last summer.
11. Rita ran faster than anyone else in the footrace.
12. None of the other runners was ever in front of Rita during the race. She led all of the other
runners in the race from start to finish.
13. Greg is very cheap. I was surprised when he paid for my dinner.
14. It was really cold yesterday. The temperature was three below zero.* I nearly
____thought______to death when I walked home!
15. Jason did an excellent job in gluing the broken vase together.
16. The sun rose at 6:21 this morning.
17. I hurt about going to Florida for my vacation, but I finally decided to go to Puerto Rico.
18. My friend took a note and passed it to me in class.
19. My mom __kept____ all the letters I wrote to her while I was in England. She didn't throw any
away.
20. An earthquake destroyed the old bridge, so the town began a new one across the river.

Practice 5: Irregular Verbs

Simple Past (S. Ps)

Direction: Complete the sentences with the simple past of any of the given irregular verbs. There
may be more than one possible completion.

1. A: Why isn't Bill here for the meeting? He's supposed to give the weekly report.
B: I spoke to him on the phone last night, and he said he'd be here.

2. After I gave a large bone to each of my three dogs, they went to separate corners of the
backyard and dug holes to bury their bones.

3. After looking at all the chairs, I choose finally the red one. It was a
difficult decision.

4. The players are depressed because they lost the game last weekend.
Next time they'll play better.

5. A: How can you take a three-month vacation? What about your job?
B: I won't be going back to that job ever again. I quit yesterday.

6. Laurie has circles under her eyes because she slept only two hours last night. She was
studying for her final exams.

7. Matt lost his watch. He looked everywhere for it. Finally, he found it in his pants that
were in the washing machine. He had washed his watch, but it was still ticking.

8. Joy was barefoot. She stepped on a piece of broken glass and cut her foot.

9. Danny and I are old friends. We met each other in 1985.

10. My father taught me how to make furniture.

11. The student with the highest grade point average read a speech at the graduation
ceremony. She about her hopes for the future of the world.

12. I didn't have a garden, so I _ grew tomatoes in a pot on the balcony outside my
apartment.

13. Paul was in a hurry to get to class this morning. He forgot to comb his hair.

14. Last week I bought an interesting book about the volcanoes in Iceland.

15. When Erica and I were introduced to each other, we shook hands.

Simple Past (S. Ps)

 16. Mike is in jail because he stole a car.

17. When I heard about Sue's problem, I felt sorry for her.

18. The students all drew pictures of their teacher, but few of the drawings looked like
her. She tried not to laugh at the pictures.

19. A few minutes ago, I heard on the radio about a bad plane accident.

20. Joe had an accident. He feel off the roof and broke his leg.

Practice 6: Simple Present, Present Progressive, and Simple Past Forms.

Direction: Complete the chart with the correct forms of the verbs.

Practice 7: Make affirmative sentence in simple past tense.

1. It / to rain/ yesterday = it was rain yesterday
2. We /to run/ to the house = we ran to the house
3. The parents /to be/ in the restaurant= the parents were be in the restaurant

Simple Past (S. Ps)

 4. Andy / to invite/ his friends = Andy invited his friends
5. Lee / to draw/ a picture = Lee drew a picture
6. Simon/ to order /a pizza = Simon ordered a pizza
7. The pupil/ to be/ in the gym = The pupil was be in the gym
8. A thief / to steal / the handbag = a thief stole the handbag
9. Phil/ to talk to /his parrot = Phil talked to his parrot
10. My brother /to make/ a lot of noise. = My brother made a lot of noise
11. The boys / to swap / comics = The boys were swap comics
12. They / to come/ out of the house. = They came out of the house

Practice 8: Change into interrogative sentence.

1. Matthew looked after the baby. = did matthew look after the baby?
2. He has missed the school bus. = did he miss the school bus?
3. I woke up at 8 o’clock. = did I wake up at 8 o’clock?
4. You have understood the text. = did you understand the text?
5. We’ve worked in a snack bar. = did we work in a snack bar?

Practice 9: Negate the sentences.

1. It rained yesterday. = it was not rain yesterday
2. We ran to the house. = we didn’t run to the house
3. The parents were in the restaurant. = the parents were not in the restaurant
4. Andy invited his friends. = Andy didn’t invite his friends
5. Lee drew a picture. = Lee didn’t draw a picture
7. The pupils were in the gym. = The pupils were not in the gym
8. A thief stole the handbag. = a thief did not steal the handbag
9. My brother made a lot of noise. = my brother didn’t make a lot of noise
10. The boys swapped comics = the boys did not swap comics

Practice 10: Form questions in the simple past.

1. why / Julia / to ask / questions = why did Julia ask question ?
2. when / you / to watch / the film = when did you watch the film?
3. the cat / to run after / the dog = did the cat run after the dog?

Simple Past (S. Ps)

 4. when / Eric / to phone / his friend = when did Eric phone his friend?
5. to be / the boys / in the sun = were the boys be in the sun?
6. what/he/to have/for lunch = what did he have for lunch?
7. how/they/to ride/their bikes = how did they ride their bikes?
8. what/Peggy/to throw = what did Peggy throw?
9. why/the teacher/to check/the computer = why did the teacher check the computer?
10. where/your father/to repair/the kite = where did your father repair the kite?

Practice 11: Make a positive, negative, and interrogative form of these sentences.

1. (Joe / steal / the money/yesterday)

________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
2. (Miranda / sweep / the floor / just now)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
3. (We / need / the dictionary/this morning)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
4. (Andre and Suzan / leave / Surabaya / 5 hours ago)
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________

Practice 12: Simple Present and Simple Past

Direction: Use the simple present or the simple past form of the verb in parentheses as appropriate.
Complete the short answers to the questions.

1. A: (you, hear) Did you hear the thunder last night?

B: No, I didn’t. I (hear, not) didn’t hear anything all night. I (be) was asleep.

2. A: Listen! (you, hear) Do you hear a siren in the distance?

B: No, I don’t . I (hear, not) don’t hear anything at all.

3. A: That's a nice bookshelf. (you, build) it?

B: No, I . My uncle (build) it for me.

4. A: I have a question. (a fish, be) slippery to hold?

B: Yes, . It can slip right out of your hand.
A: How about frogs? (they, be) slippery?

Simple Past (S. Ps)

 B: Yes, .
A: What about snakes?
B: I (know, not) . I've never touched a snake.

5. A: I (want) to go to mall later this afternoon and look for a new bathing suit. (you, want)
to go with me?
B: I can't. I (have) an appointment with my English teacher. Besides, I (buy)
a new bathing suit last year. I (need, not) a new one this year.

6. I always (offer) to help my older neighbor carry her groceries into her house every time I
see her return from the store. She (be) always very grateful. Yesterday, she (offer) to
pay me for helping her, but of course I (accept, not) the offer.

7. Last Monday night, I (take) my sister and her husband to my favorite restaurant for dinner
and (find) _______ the doors locked. I (know, not) it then, but the restaurant (be, not)
_______ open on Mondays. We (want, not) to eat anywhere else, so we (go)
back to my house. I (make) a salad and (heat) some soup. Everyone (seem)
satisfied even though I (be, not) a wonderful cook.

8. My daughter is twenty-one years old. She (like) to travel. My wife and I (worry)
about her a little when she (be) away from home, but we also (trust) her judgment.

Last year, after she (graduate) from college, she (go) to Europe with two of her friends.
They (travel, not) by train or by car. Instead, they (rent) motor scooters and (ride)
slowly through each country they visited.

While she (be) away, my wife and I (worry) out her safety. We (be) very
happy when we (see) her smiling face at the airport and (know) that she was finally
safe at home.

Simple Past (S. Ps)

Practice 13: Which sentences are correct?

1. Which sentence is in the simple past?

a. She read a book b. She reads a book c. She has read a book

2. Which negative sentence is in the simple past?

a. They didn’t sing a song b. They did’nt sing a song c. They don’t sang a song
3. Which negative sentence is in the simple past?
a. We spoke not Russian b. We not spoke Russian c. We did not speak Russian
4. Which question is in the simple past form?
a. Did you saw her? b. Did you see her? c. Have you seen her?
5. Which question is in the simple past form?
a. When did he find the key? b. When found he the keys? c. When does he find the
keys?
6. In which sentence is the simple past used correctly?
a. The room were very nice. b. The room was very nice. c. The room is very nice.
7. In which sentence is the simple past used correctly?
a. I forgotted my homework b. I forgot my homework c. I forgots my homework.

Practice 14: Choose the correct answers. The answer can be more the one.
1. Which verb forms are used with the Simple Past?
a. Infinitive + -ed b. was/were + infinitive + -ing

2. Which verb forms are in the Simple Past?

a. was b. were c. played
d. plaied e. had f. has
3. Which verb forms are correct?
a. lived b. liveed c. tried
d. tryed e. planed f. planned
4. Which sentences/questions are in the Simple Past?
a. I fell from the tree. b. She was in Hamburg. c. He didn’t learn for school.
d. I’ve found a pen. e. We’re watching a film.
5. What are typical signal words for the Simple Past?
a. yesterday b. two weeks ago c. at the moment
d. in 2002 e. while

Simple Past (S. Ps)

Practice 15: Correct the errors.
1. Did you went down town yesterday?
go

2. Yesterday I speak to ken before he leaves his office and goes home.
spoke

3. I heared a good joke last night.

heard

4. When Pablo finished his work.

did Pablo finish

5. I visited my relatives in New York City last month.

6. Where you did go yesterday afternoon?

Did you

7. Ms. Wan flew from Singapore to Tokyo last week.

8. When I see my friend yesterday, he didn’t spoke to me.

speak

9. Why Mustafa didn’t came to class last week?

come

10. Where were you bought those shoes? I like them.

Did buy

11. Mr. Adams teached our class last week.

taught

12. I writed a letter last night.

Wrote

13. Who you wrote a letter to?

Did you write

14. Who did open the door? Jack openned it.

opened

Simple Past (S. Ps)