António Daiuane Mutuque

Cecília Paulo Adriano Efrem

Dino Paulo Serrote
Insrael Benjamim

Past Simple and Past Continuous

Universidade Rovuma
Lichinga
2024
 António Daiuane Mutuque

Cecília Paulo Adriano Efrem

Dino Paulo Serrote

Insrael Benjamim

Past Simple and Past Continuous

(Licenciatura em Ensino de Química)

Trabalho de pesquisa da cadeira de Inglês,

a ser entregue no Departamento de
ciencias tecnológicas, engenharia e
Matemática, para fins avaliativos, sob
orientação do Msc. Matias Quenane.

Universidade Rovuma

Lichinga

2024
Index
1. Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 4
2. Past Simple ...................................................................................................................................... 5
3. Past Continuous ............................................................................................................................... 7
3.1. IMPORTANT ......................................................................................................................... 8
4. Conclusion..................................................................................................................................... 10
5. Bibliografic references .................................................................................................................. 11
 1. Introduction

The present work talks about Past simple and past I continue, in English when we speak
of verb tenses that reflect overeverything in the actions in the past we find this two
verbal times mainly, however we will see in this work the whole approach of these
times, we will also see when the work goes the verbs often used and not least the
difference that exists between them, since everyone speaks of the past

1.1. Obejectives
1.1.1. General
 Know the past simple and past I continue from the sentences or words in English
1.1.2. Specific
 Conjugate regular verbs in the past simple and past continuous in English
 Conjugate irregular verbs in the past simple and past continuous in English
 Understand the difference between past simple and past continuous
1.2. Methodology

To carry out the work, it was necessary to use some documents and magazines
published on the internet and, on the one hand, the various manuals relating to
bibliography consultation.
2. Past Simple

Past Simple expresses past actions, that is, it describes facts that have already happened.
In this verb tense in English, the pushups of the regular verbs end in –d or –ed, while
verbs the irregular ones do not have a standard form.

Exemples:

 He loved her. (affirmative)

 Did he love her? (interrogative)
 He didn’t love her. (negative)

Use 1: Completed Action in the Past

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

Exemples:

 I saw a movie yestarday.

 I didn’t seen a play yestarday.
 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 Past Simple to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions
happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.

Exemples:

 I fineshed 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 fluor, puor in the milk, and then add the eggs?
Use 3: Duration in Past

The Simple past can be used with a duretion 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, etc.

Exemples:

 I lived in Brazil for two years.

 Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
 The sat at the beach all day.
 They did not stay at the beach all day.
 We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.

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.

Exemples:

 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 werw a kid?
 She worked at the movie theater ater school.
 They never went to school, they always skipped class.

Use 5: Past Facts or Generalizations

The Past Simple can also be used to discribe 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”.

Exemples:

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

  He didn’t like tomatoes before.
 Did you live in Quelimane when you were a kid?
 Peaple paid much more to make cell phone calls in the past
3. Past Continuous

Form

[was/were + presente participle “ing”]

Exemples:

 You were studying when she called (affirmative).

 Were you studying when she called? (interrogative).
 You were not studying when she called (negative).

Use 1: Interrupted Action in the Past

Use Past Continuous to indicate that a longer action in the past was interrupted. The
interrupted. The interruption is usually a shorter action in the Simple Past. Remembre
this can be a real interruption or just na interruption in time.

Exemples:

 I was watching Tv when she called.

 When the phone rang, she was writing a letter.
 While we were having the picnic, it started to rain.
 What were you doing when the eathquake started?
 I was listening to my iPod, so I didn’t hear the fire alarm.
 You were not listening to when I told you to turn the oven off.
 While Jonh was sleeping last night, someone stole his car.
 Sammy was waiting for us when we got off the plane.
 While I was writing the email, the computer suddenly went off.

Use 2: Specific Time as na Interruption

In use 1, discribed above, the Past Continuou sis interrupted by a shorteraction in the
Simple Past. However, you can also use a specific time as an interruption.

Exemples:
  Last night at 6 pm, I was eating dinner.
 At midnight, we were still driving through the desert.
 Yestarday at this time, I was sitting at my desk at work.
3.1. IMPORTANT

In the Past Simple, a specific time is used to show when na action began or finished. In
the Past Continuous, a specific time only interrupts the action.

Exemples:

 Last night at 6 PM, I ate dinner.

I started esting PM.
 Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner.
I started earlier; and at 6 PM, I was in the process for eating dinner.

Use 3: Parrallel Actions

When you use the Past Continuous with two actions in the same sentence, it express the
idea that both actions were happening at the same time. The actions are parallel.

Exemples:

 I was studying while he was making dinner.

 Whilw Ellen was Reading, Tim was watching television.
 Were you listening while he was talking?
 I wasn’t paying attention while I was waiting the letter, so I made several
mistakes?
 What were you doing while you were writing?
 Thomas wasn’t working, and I wasn’t working either.
 They were eating dinner, discussing their plans, having a good time.

Use 4: Atmosphere

In English, we oftem use a series of parallel actions to discribe the atmosphere at a

particular time in the past.

Exemple: When I walked into the office, several peaple were busily typing, some were
talking on the phones, the boss was yelling directions, and customers were waiting to
be helped. One customer was yelling at a secretary and waving his hands. Others were
complaining to each other about the bad service.

Use 5: Repetition and Irritation with “Always”

The Past Continuous with words such as “Always” or “constantly” expresses the idea
that something irritaining or shocking often happened in the past. The concept is very
similar to the expression “used to” but with negative emotion. Remembre to put the
words “always” or “constantly” between “be” and “verb+ing”.

Exemples:

 She was always coming to classe late.

 He was constantly talking. He annyed everyone.
 I didn’t like them because they were alwalys complaining.

While vs when

Clauses are groups of words which have meaning, but are often not complete sentences.
Some clauses begin with the words “when” such as “when she called” or “when it bit
me”. Other clauses begin with “while” such as “while she was sleeping” and “while he
was surfing”. When you talk about things in the past, “when” is most often followed by
Past Continuous. “while” expresses the idea of “during that time”. Study the exemples
below. They have similar meanings, but they emphasize diferente parts off the sentence.

Exemples:

 I was studying when she called.

 While I was studying, she called.
4. Conclusion

Reaching the end of the work, we conclude that the Simple Past and Past Continuous
are tenses in English that express the action of subjects in the past, but the Simple Past
specifically expresses action that also began and ended in the past and does not reflect
in the present or does not continue, at the same time. whereas the Past Continuous is
one that even the actions done in the past generate continuity, that is, they are
continuous and do not end, and the way of conjugating verbs is mainly in gerunds
expressing continuity.
5. Bibliografic references

Paulo. R. B. (2007). Inglês 12a classe. Maputo. 1a Edição. Textos Editores, Lda-
Maçambique. Av Julius Nyerere.

Limited. A. J. (2004). Past Simple & Past Continuous. South-Africa. 1st impress. Slids.

Michel. A. (1998). Grammar- Past Continuous and Past Simple.

http://learnenglish.britishcoucil.org/en/quick-gramar/past-continuous-and-past-
simple#sthash.Rmmp3je9.dpuf