Simple Past tense

Simple Past

SIMPLE PAST

BE CAREFUL!

The simple past in English may look like a tense in your own language, but the meaning may be different.

1. Simple Past: Form

Regular verbs: base+ede.g. walked, showed, watched, played, smiled, stopped

Irregular verbs: see list of verbs

Simple past, be, have, do:

Subject	Verb
	Be	Have	Do
I	was	had	did
You	were	had	did
He, she, it	was	had	did
We	were	had	did
You	were	had	did
They	were	had	did

Affirmative

• I was in Japan last year
• She had a headache yesterday.
• We did our homework last night.

Negative and interrogative

Note:

FFor the negative and interrogative simple past form of "do" as an ordinary verb, use the auxiliary "do", e.g. We didn't do our homework last night. The negative of "have" in the simple past is usually formed using the auxiliary "do", but sometimes by simply adding not or the contraction "n't".

The interrogative form of "have" in the simple past normally uses the auxiliary "do".

• They weren't in Rio last summer.
• We hadn't any money.
• We didn't have time to visit the Eiffel Tower.
• We didn't do our exercises this morning.
• Were they in Iceland last January?
• Did you have a bicycle when you were a boy?
• Did you do much climbing in Switzerland?

Simple past, regular verbs

Affirmative
Subject	verb + ed
I	washed
Negative
Subject	did not	infinitive without to
They	didn't	visit ...
Interrogative
Did	subject	infinitive without to
Did	she	arrive...?
Interrogative negative
Did not	subject	infinitive without to
Didn't	you	like..?

Example: to walk, simple past.

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I walked	I didn't walk	Did I walk?
You walked	You didn't walk	Did you walk?
He,she,it walked	He didn't walk	Did he walk?
We walked	We didn't walk	Did we walk?
You walked	You didn't walk	Did you walk?
They walked	They didn't walk	Did they walk?

Note: For the negative and interrogative form of all verbs in the simple past, always use the auxiliary 'did''.

Examples: Simple past, irregular verbs

to go

• He went to a club last night.
• Did he go to the cinema last night?
• He didn't go to bed early last night.

to give

• We gave her a doll for her birthday.
• They didn't give John their new address.
• Did Barry give you my passport?

to come

• My parents came to visit me last July.
• We didn't come because it was raining.
• Did he come to your party last week?

2. Simple past, function

The simple past is used to talk about a completed action in a time before now. Duration is not important. The time of the action can be in the recent past or the distant past.

• John Cabot sailed to America in 1498.
• My father died last year.
• He lived in Fiji in 1976.
• We crossed the Channel yesterday.

You always use the simple past when you say when something happened, so it is associated with certain past time expressions

Examples

• frequency:
  often, sometimes, always;
• a definite point in time:
  last week, when I was a child, yesterday, six weeks ago.
• an indefinite point in time:
  the other day, ages ago, a long time ago etc.

Note: the word ago is a useful way of expressing the distance into the past. It is placed afterthe period of time e.g. a week ago, three years ago, a minute ago.

Examples

• Yesterday, I arrived in Geneva.
• She finished her work at seven o'clock.
• We saw a good film last week.
• I went to the theatre last night.
• She played the piano when she was a child.
• He sent me a letter six months ago.
• Peter left five minutes ago.

Present Perfect + for and since

PRESENT PERFECT + for, since

Using the present perfect, we can define a period of time before now by considering its duration,with for + a period of time, or by considering its starting point, with since + a point in time.

For + a period of time

• for six years, for a week, for a month, for hours, for two hours.
• I have worked here for five years.

Since + a point in time

• since this morning, since last week, since yesterday,
• since I was a child, since Wednesday, since 2 o'clock.
• I have worked here since 1990.

present perfect with for

• She has lived here for twenty years.
• We have taught at this school for a long time.
• Alice has been married for three months.
• They have been at the hotel for a week.

present perfect with since

• She has lived here since 1980.
• We have taught at this school since 1965
• Alice has been married since March 2nd.
• They have been at the hotel since last Tuesday.

Note:

• For and since can both be used with the past perfect.
• Since can only be used with perfect tenses, for can also be used with the simple past.

Present Perfect Continuous

PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

Present Perfect Continuous, Form

The present perfect continuous is made up of two elements:

1. the present perfect of the verb 'to be' (have/has been), and
2. the present participle of the main verb (base+ing).

Subject	has/have been	base+ing
She	has been	swimming

Affirmative
She has been / She's been	running
Negative
She hasn't been	running
Interrogative
Has she been	running?
Interrogative negative
Hasn't she been	running?

Example: to live, present perfect continuous

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I have been living	I haven't been living	Have I been living?
You have been living	You haven't been living	Have you been living?
He, she, it has been living	He hasn't been living	Has she been living?
We have been living	We haven't been living	Have we been living?
You have been living	You haven't been living	Have you been living?
They have been living	They haven't been living	Have they been living?

Present perfect continuous, function

The present perfect continuous refers to an unspecified time between 'before now' and 'now'. The speaker is thinking about something that started but perhaps did not finish in that period of time. He/she is interested in the process as well as the result, and this process may still be going on, or may have just finished.

Examples

1. Actions that started in the past and continue in the present.

• She has been waiting for you all day (= and she's still waiting now).
• I've been working on this report since eight o'clock this morning (= and I still haven't finished it).
• They have been travelling since last October (= and they're not home yet).

2. Actions that have just finished, but we are interested in the results:

• She has been cooking since last night (= and the food on the table looks delicious).
• It's been raining (= and the streets are still wet).
• Someone's been eating my chips (= half of them have gone).

Verbs without continuous forms

With verbs not normally used in the continuous form, use the present perfect simple. See list of these verbs under 'Present Continuous':

• I've wanted to visit China for years.
• She's known Robert since she was a child.
• I've hated that music since I first heard it.
  
• I've heard a lot about you recently.
• We've understood everything we've heard this morning.

Present Perfect or Simple Past?

How to choose between the Present Perfect and Simple Past Tenses

• Always use the Present Perfect when the time is not important, or not specified.
• Always use the Simple Past when details about the time or place are specified or asked for.

Compare:

Present Perfect	Simple Past
I have lived in Lyon.	I lived in Lyon in 1989.
They have eaten Thai food.	They ate Thai food last night.
Have you seen 'Othello'?.	Where did you see 'Othello'?
We have been to Ireland.	When did you go to Ireland?

There is also a difference of attitude that is often more important than the time factor.

• "What did you do at school today?" is a question about activities, and considers the school day as finished.
• "What have you done at school today?" is a question about results - "show me", and regards the time of speaking as a continuation of the school day.

Present Perfect Tense

Present Perfect Verb Tense

PRESENT PERFECT

1. Present Perfect - Form

The present perfect of any verb is composed of two elements : the appropriate form of the auxiliary verb to have (present tense), plus the past participle of the main verb. The past participle of a regular verb is base+ed, e.g. played, arrived, looked. For irregular verbs, see theTable of irregular verbs in the section called 'Verbs'.

Affirmative
Subject	to have	past participle
She	has	visited
Negative
Subject	to have + not	past participle
She	hasn't	visited
Which is the best English?
to have	Subject	past participle
Has	she	visited..?
Interrogative negative
to have + not	Subject	past participle
Hasn't	she	visited...?

Example: to walk, present perfect

Affirmative	Negative	Interrogative
I have walked	I haven't walked	Have I walked?
You have walked	You haven't walked	Have you walked?
He, she, it has walked	He, she, it hasn't walked	Has he,she,it walked
We have walked	We haven't walked	Have we walked?
You have walked	You haven't walked	Have you walked?
They have walked	They haven't walked	Have they walked?

2. Present perfect, function

The Present Perfect is used to indicate a link between the present and the past. The time of the action is before now but not specified, and we are often more interested in the resultthan in the action itself.

BE CAREFUL! There may be a verb tense in your language with a similar form, but the meaning is probably NOT the same.

The Present Perfect is used to describe:

1. An action or situation that started in the past and continues in the present. Example: I have lived in Bristol since 1984 (= and I still do.)
2. An action performed during a period that has not yet finished. Example: She has been to the cinema twice this week (= and the week isn't over yet.)
3. A repeated action in an unspecified period between the past and now. Example: We have visited Portugal several times.
4. An action that was completed in the very recent past, (expressed by 'just'). Example: I have just finished my work.
5. An action when the time is not important. Example: He has read 'War and Peace'.(the result of his reading is important)

Note: When we want to give or ask details about when, where, who, we use the simple past.Example: He read 'War and Peace' last week.

Examples

1. Actions started in the past and continuing in the present.

• They haven't lived here for years.
• She has worked in the bank for five years.
• We have had the same car for ten years.
• Have you played the piano since you were a child?

2. When the time period referred to has not finished.

• I have worked hard this week.
• It has rained a lot this year.
• We haven't seen her today.

3. Actions repeated in an unspecified period between the past and now.

• They have seen that film six times.
• It has happened several times already.
• She has visited them frequently.
• We have eaten at that restaurant many times.

4. Actions completed in the very recent past (+just).

• Have you just finished work?
• I have just eaten.
• We have just seen her.
• Has he just left?

5. When the precise time of the action is not important or not known.

• Someone has eaten my soup!
• Have you seen 'Gone with the Wind'?
• She's studied Japanese, Russian and English.