English Past Simple Lesson

English

A class by Joe

Past Simple

To talk about: 1. Something that happened once in the past: Example: 'We went to Spain on holiday.' 2. Something that happened several times in the past: Example: 'When I was a child, I walked to school every day.' 3. something that was true for some time in the past: Example: 'I lived in the USA for a year.' 4. we often use expressions with 'ago' with the past simple: Example: 'I met my wife a long time ago.'

When do we use the past simple?

Regular Verbs

For regular verbs, we add -ed. Word examples: play – played, watch – watched, want – wantedSentence examples: 'I played video games last night.''She watched the football match yesterday.'

How do we use the past simple?

What are the original forms of the verbs used in the sentences?

She slept very well last night.

He had toast for breakfast this morning.

I went to the cinema yesterday.

Sentence Examples

Click on the button for a a list you can save and print (there are 2 pages).

Irregular Verbs

Regular verbs are easy but there are lots of irregular verbs in English. Here are the most common irregular verbs with their past tense forms:

How do we use the past simple?

When we use the negative, we don’t change the main verb. We use ‘didn’t’ or 'did not' instead. I didn’t watch TV yesterday. I did not watch TV yesterday. They didn’t go to school last week.They did not go to school last week.

Negative Sentences

Negative

You were late for school this morning.

The concert wasn't amazing.The concert was not amazing.You weren’t late for school this morning. You were not late for school this morning.

Be careful!For negatives add 'n't' or ‘not’.

Remember! I was You wereShe was He wasIt was We were They were

'Be' is a special verb and we use 'was' or 'were' for the past simple, depending on who you are talking about.

The concert was amazing!

The Verb 'be'

Negative Form

Read the rules and examples and click on the 'questions' tabs to do the activities.

That was easy, right? Now try something a lttle more difficult!

Now click on the buttons below to practice. Read the rules and examples and enjoy the games!

If you want to practice more, click on the buttons for extra activities and games.

Extra activities

Well Done!

Great Job!