Past simple (in English): structure, uses and examples

Examples / by admin / April 02, 2023

He past simple(past simple) is a tense used to express actions or states that began and ended in the past. For example: They went to Mexico for their summer vacation./ They went to Mexico for their summer vacation.

He past simplecan be used to express both punctual past actions (I went to the park yesterday./ Yesterday, I went to the park.), as habitual actions in the past (I went to the park every day. / I went to the park every day.). It is the context that determines which use is referred to.

He past simpleis one of the so-called narrative tense, or narrative tenses in English, together with the past continuous (past continuous) and past perfect (perfect past).

See also: «present continuous" (either present progressive)

Uses of past simple

He past simple is used to express:

Actions or states that started and ended in the past. These actions or states do not extend or have implications in the present. In Spanish it is equivalent to past perfect simple (I went, I did, I came). For example: He came home on Saturday. / He came home on Saturday.

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Actions that follow a chronological order in the past. For example: Yo woke up and I stayed in bed for an hour. Then, I got up and I had a shower. / I woke up and stayed in bed for an hour. Then I got up and took a shower.
Habitual actions or states in the past. These actions were not punctual but were repeated or habitual. In Spanish it is equivalent to imperfect tense (went, did, came). For example: Yo lived in another city in the past. / I lived in another city in the past.

Habitual actions or states in the past can also be expressed with the construction used to (used to). For example: Yo used to live in another city in the past./ I used to live in another city in the past.

to take into account: Since the past simpleIt is equivalent to two verb tenses in Spanish: the present perfect (I went, I did, I came) and the past perfect (went, did, came), it is the context that determines which usage is referenced.

Regular Verbs and Irregular Verbs

The verbs in past simple They are divided into regular and irregular, which determines their writing and pronunciation:

Regular verbs. He past simpleof regular verbs in English is formed by adding the ending -ed to the infinitive of the verb. For example: work-workEd, want–wantEd, start–startEd.
Irregular verbs. He past simple Of the irregular verbs in English, unlike the regular ones, it does not follow any rule for its formation. For example: eat- tie, break – broke, cut – cut.

affirmative structure of past simple

There is only one conjugation for all the people in English, that is, the verb conjugated in the past does not change according to the pronoun, as it does in Spanish. For example:

Yo gave a speech. / I gave a speech.
I have gave a speech./ He gave a speech.

He past simple follow the structure:

Subject	verb in past simple
Yo you I have She Item We They	*went*

For example: She learned the lesson by heart./ She memorized the lesson.

Attention: Unlike Spanish, the verb in past simple in English it does not change depending on the pronoun. For example: I went; she went; they went.

negative structure of past simple

The negative structure of past simpleis formed by preceding the auxiliary did not (didn't) to the infinitive of the verb:

Subject	*didn't*	infinitive verb
Yo you I have She Item We They	*didn't*	go

For example: Yo she did not eat a big sandwich for lunch. / I didn't eat a big sandwich for lunch.

Attention: The conjugation of the negative structure of the past simpleis given by the presence of the auxiliary did not (didn't). The main verb in the negative sentences goes in the infinitive (and not conjugated in the past, as in the affirmative sentences). For example: She did not pay much for the blouse.(And not: She did not pay …)

interrogative structure of past simple

The interrogative structure of the past simpleis formed by preceding the auxiliary did to the subject. The main verb goes in infinitive (and not conjugated in the past).

did	Subject	infinitive verb
did	Yo you I have She Item We They	go

For example: did you play tennis last week?/ Did you play tennis last week?

Attention: In the interrogative structure, the main verb is in the infinitive (and not conjugated in the past). For example: did you study?(And not: Did you study?)

Verb to be

Subject	*was / were*	complement
Yo I have She Item	*was* / *wasn't* (*was not*)	born here.
you We They	*were / weren't* (*were not*)	born here.

The verb to be (to be and to be) in past simple is different from the rest of the verbs in English:

It has two conjugations according to the pronoun:was / were. For example:Yo was a good student at elementary school. / I was a good student in elementary school.
The negative sentences with to bedo not use didn't (did not). The negative is formed with wasn't (was not) and weren't (were not), according to the pronoun. For example: They weren't beats./ They arrived, they were not late.
To bedoes not use the auxiliary did to ask questions. Used was / were, yesas appropriate, and the inversion between subject and verb is respected, as in all questions in English. For example: Were you at the office yesterday? / Were you at the office yesterday?

See also: Sentences with "was" and "were”

Adverbs of time and frequency with the past simple

He past simplecan be used together adverbs of time and of frequency. Adverbs of time usually go at the end of the sentence, and those of frequency, between the subject and the verb.

yesterday yesterday	while ago some time ago	last month last month
last week last week	a long time ago long ago	last year last year
two weeks ago two weeks ago	many years ago Many years ago	usually usually
the day before yesterday the day before yesterday	ages ago a very long time ago	often often
on the weekend weekend	in 2017 in 2017	Sometimes sometimes
on Saturday Saturday	when i was a kid as a kid	seldom seldom
just the other day the other day	always always	never never

to take into account: The word aug means "does". It is used after a period of time. For example: ten years aug.

Examples of sentences in past simple

I traveled across the US last summer.
I traveled around the United States last summer.
I met your brother at the movie theater yesterday.
I met your brother at the cinema yesterday.
Matt was the friend who saved my life.
Matt was the friend that saved my life.
Did you notice his reaction from her?
Did you notice his reaction?
We went to school by bus yesterday.
Yesterday we went to school by bus.
I bought the car in January.
I bought the car in January.
Suddenly, Tom broke in and asked for his brother from him.
Suddenly, Tom appeared and asked for his brother.
I didn't think about that, sorry!
I didn't think of that, sorry!
Did Joyce go to Paris last year?
Joyce went to Paris last year?
Did you do much hiking during your vacation?
Did you do a lot of hiking during your vacation?
It rained all night.
It rained all night
Where did you buy those chocolates?
Where did you buy those chocolates?
Mel visited an active volcano while he was in Iceland.
Mel visited an active volcano while he was in Iceland.
When I was a child, I didn't like soccer.
When I was a kid, I didn't like soccer.
Last year I went to Europe with my aunt.
Last year I went to Europe with my aunt.
Steve wrote down his telephone number and address on a piece of paper.
Steve wrote down her phone number and her address on a piece of paper.
Paul didn't study for the exam.
Paul did not study for the test.
We were best friends while we were at high school.
We were the best of friends during high school.
Did you see Mary while in London?
Did you see Mary while she was in London?
They didn't believe him.
They didn't believe him.

Follow with:

Simple present in English
Simple future
compound future

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