24. Past tense

Regular English verbs

These form both the PAST SIMPLE and the PAST PARTICIPLE (used in the PRESENT PERFECT), by adding -"ed" to the verb stem, e.g.:

to serve (past simple "yesterday I served a ball", present perfect "I have always served well")
to pass (past simple "yesterday I passed the test", present perfect "I have passed many tests")
to want (past simple "yesterday I wanted a beer", present perfect "I have always liked beer").

When a regular verb ends in "y" the ending of the PAST SIMPLE AND PAST PARTICIPLE changes to "ied" .. eg carry > carried, marry > married.

Irregular verbs (also called strong verbs) change the vowel of the verb stem. swim (swam, have swum), break (broke, have broken), lead (led have led).

Other irregular verbs add the letters "d" or "t" and also change the vowel sound - hear (heard, have heard) , sweep (swept, have swept).

A fairly large class of verbs which already end in "d" or "t" do not change in their past forms - bet (bet, bet), broadcast, burst, cut, cast, fit, forecast, hit, hurt, put, quit, reset, read, shed, shut, wed.

"Did" to make questions about the past but using the main verb in the naked INFINITIVE form:

When did you meet your wife?
Where did you go for your holidays?
Did she play tennis when she was younger?
Did you live abroad?

But some questions are also made using the simple past:

Who discovered penicillin?
Who wrote Don Quixote?

We use didn’t (did not) to make negatives with the past tense:

They didn’t go to Spain this year.
We didn’t get home until very late last night.
I didn’t see you yesterday.

24.1 Read the following a) in the past simple and b) in the present perfect negative

I break a cup.
It begins to rain.
We like oranges.
You cut your finger
She comes early.
Birds fly high.
I lie on the bed.
He teaches English.
The river flows to the sea.
I know his name.
You lie to me.
The prisoner runs away.
He tears his coat.
They have a car.
We wake up at seven.
Your dog bites me.
It costs a lot of money.
You hid the key.
The river freezes in winter.
The drink tea every day.
I choose a book.
The servant sweeps the room.
He does his work well.
That pudding smells nice.
You find your bag.
You wear a lovely dress.
I say no.
Some steals the money.
We ring the bell.
You ride a bicycle.
The boy throws a ball.
The girl catches it.
I put the book on the table.
Mother makes a cup of tea.
She takes a plate from the cupboard.
You spend too much money.
She tells us a story.
I try to be useful.

24.1 Continued...

The red light means stop.
The little boy falls down.
They build a house
The sick man gets better.
I ate my lunch quickly.
Flowers grow in my garden.
The soldier fights the enemy.
I want coffee for breakfast.
We buy meat.
He feeds his horse.
She loses her way.
A baker sells bread.
I bend my arm.
We swim in the sea.
She understands everything.
I see the beautiful tie in the show window.
The wind blows stongly.
He thinks hard.
I feel ill.
We go out every day.
The picture hangs on the wall.
Her knee hurts her.
I use my car every day
We keep our handkerchiefs in the drawer.
They meet outside the cinema.
He always pays the bill.
I play football every Saturday.
I read a book before I go to bed.
He smokes a pipe after supper.
She shuts the door softly.
The artist draws a picture.
I write letters on Sundays.
She lights the fire every morning.
You hear a noise.
The little boy stands on a chair.
She always sits down when she is tired.
We let the cat out at night.

EnglishStrongVerbs

We use the PAST TENSE to talk about:

1. Something that happened once in the past:

I met my wife in 1983.
We went to Spain for our holidays.
They got home very late last night.

2. Something that happened again and again in the past:

When I was a boy I walked a mile to school every day.
We swam a lot while we were on holiday.
They always enjoyed visiting their friends.

3. something that was true for some time in the past:

I lived abroad for ten years.
He enjoyed being a student.
She played a lot of tennis when she was younger.

4. we often use phrases with ago with the past tense:

I met my wife a long time ago.

You must always use the Present perfect when the time of an action is not important or not specified.

You must always use the Simple past when details about the time or place that an action occurred are given or requested.

You can also use "used to" to describe a habit in the past - often in contrast with what you do now e.g.

When I was a boy I used to walk a mile to school every day.
We used to swim a lot when we were on holiday
They always used to enjoy visiting their friends.
I used to live abroad.
I used to enjoy being a student
She used to play a lot of tennis when she was younger.
NOTE the negative: I didn't use to live abroad, I didn't use to enjoy being a student.

24.4 Answer in the PRESENT PERFECT or the PAST tense

When did you last see me?
Where did you write your last homework?
What have you done for homework?
When did this lesson begin?
Did you understand your last grammar lesson?
Have you learnt all the English strong verbs by heart.
What did you drink for breakfast today?
How much did that pen cost?
Have you lost anything this week?
When did you shut your book?
Why have you shut your book?
Have I asked you to open your books?
Where did you buy that lovely tie?
How did you come to your lesson last time?
Where did you go last night?
What did you have for lunch?
Have you ever seen a giraffe?
Where did you spend your holiday last year?
Have you been to the pictures this week?
When did you begin to learn English?

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