Past simple
It's time to learn more about the past simple tense. We’ll find out when to use it and learn how to make positives, negatives and questions. Then we'll put them into practice by interviewing a famous footballer!
Finn brings you past simple explanations and examples in this unit’s 6 Minute Grammar, while Sophie eats biscuits…
Finn
Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute Grammar with me, Finn.
Sophie
And me, Sophie. Hello.
Finn
In today’s programme we’re talking about the past simple tense…
Sophie
… when we use it, how we form it for regular verbs…
Finn
…we’ll take a look at some irregular verbs, negative sentences and questions.
Sophie
…and we’ll finish as usual with a quiz.
Finn
Ok - so let’s get started! The past simple is a tense in English that we use to talk about an event that happened and finished in the past. Here’s Neil with our first example:
Neil
Jack Dorsey invented Twitter in 2006.
Sophie
Thanks Neil. Now, we often find the past simple in stories like this:
Neil
The boy started running. Suddenly, he stopped and listened…
Finn
Wow - sounds like an exciting story! And it had three past simple verbs: started, stopped, and listened.
Sophie
… and they are all regular verbs. We make the past simple of regular verbs by adding an ‘e’ and a ‘d’ to the infinitive.
Finn
… so the past simple of start is started,
Sophie
… the past simple of stop is stopped,
Finn
… and the past simple of listen is listened
Sophie
… did you spot the difference in the pronunciation there?
Finn
Yes, sometimes the ‘e’ and ‘d’ at the end sounds like a ‘t’. ‘t’. Listen: Stopped. Stopped.
Sophie
Sometimes it sounds more like ‘id’. ‘id’. Started. Started.
Finn
… or like a ‘d’: Listened. Listened.
Sophie
Let’s hear all three again:
Neil
Stopped, started, listened. Stopped, started, listened.
Finn
So, listen out for those 3 different pronunciations of the past simple e-d ending. It’s simple, isn’t it…
Sophie
Yes, well we are talking about the past simple, … but … irregular verbs are not quite so simple.
Finn
That's true: can you give us some examples of irregular verbs, please, Neil?
Neil
I went to the interview yesterday and got the job!
Finn
And another one please?
Neil
Kurosawa made some wonderful films.
Finn
So the past simple of go is went.
Sophie
...get is got.
Finn
...and make is made.
Sophie
And I’m afraid you just have to learn irregular verbs. There is no one simple rule for them.
Finn
But the good news is that the past simple is the same for all people.
Sophie
Yes – it’s I got the job, you got the job, he got the job…
Finn
We got the job… they got the job...
Sophie
Everybody got the job!
Both
Hooray!
IDENT
You’re listening to BBC Learning English.
Finn
Now, for negatives in the past simp… [sfx: loud sound of unwrapping of biscuit and someone taking a bite] …Sophie, are you hungry?
Sophie [munching] Yes, sorry, I didn’t have breakfast this morning.
Finn
You didn’t have breakfast! Aha! … past simple negatives … this is simple… you just put didn’t in front of the main verb.
Sophie
That’s right. Didn’t plus the infinitive makes a past simple negative: I didn’t have breakfast this morning.
Finn
So remember: it’s not I didn’t had, it’s I didn’t have breakfast.
Sophie
I didn’t have breakfast. I didn't have time!
Finn
Now, let’s move on to past simple questions. Here’s an example:
Neil
Did you make that cake? It’s delicious!
Sophie
Did you say ‘cake’? Where?
Finn
Sorry Sophie, it was just the example! So in past simple questions it’s did plus subject plus an infinitive: Did you make? Let’s hear that again - with an answer this time:
Neil
Did you make that cake? It’s delicious!
Finn
Yes, I did.
Sophie
Or we could say: No, I didn’t. For short answers, just drop the verb and use the subject with did or didn’t, so it’s Yes, I did.
Finn
Or: No, I didn’t.
Finn
Good! Now for a quiz. I’ll say a sentence in the present simple and you change it to the past simple. Here goes: We start work at 10 in the morning. We start work at 10 in the morning.
Sophie
Ok, in the past simple it’s: We started work at 10 in the morning.
Finn
We started work at 10 in the morning. Great! Number 2. Here’s a sentence in the past simple: you have to make it negative. Ready? Scientists found a cure for the disease. Scientists found a cure for the disease.
Sophie
And the answer is: Scientists didn’t find a cure for the disease. We change ‘found’ to ‘find’ and put ‘didn’t’ in front of the verb: Scientists didn’t find a cure for the disease.
Finn
And finally, I’ll ask a past simple question. Can you give me a short answer. Sophie: Did you have breakfast this morning? Did you have breakfast this morning?
Sophie
No, I didn’t. Or I could say: Yes, I did. Finn, what did you have for breakfast?
Finn
Oh, I had cereal, eggs, toast, orange juice … coffee, croissants ….
Sophie
Stop, stop!...I’m so hungry… [munching a biscuit]…There’s more about this on our website at bbclearningenglish.com. Join us again for more 6 Minute Grammar.
Both
Bye.
Well done! You’ve studied past simple positives, negatives, questions and irregular verbs.
Grammar: Past simple
Past simple - Meaning and use
We use the past simple when an action or situation happens and finishes in the past. We usually say or know when it happened.
She called me at the office yesterday.
I worked in London in 2010.
Steve went to the US three times last year.
We often use the past simple in stories, when one thing happens after another in the past.
I stopped working in London and I looked for another job.
Past simple positive
For regular verbs, the past simple ends in -ed. Irregular verbs have a different past form. The past simple form is the same for all persons (I, you, he, she, etc.)
I finished university in 2010 and I started a job in a bank.
Then he left that job and went to live in Japan.
We lived there for a year.
Past simple negative
We make the negative form with didn’t (did not) + infinitive without ‘to’.
I didn’t like working in a bank.
He didn’t go to the US. He went to Japan.
Past simple questions
Past simple wh-word questions are made from question word + did + subject + infinitive.
Where did you go last night?
The question word how is usually combined with other words when asking for information, such as size, time, or the price of something.
How long did it take to cook dinner?
Past simple yes/no questions are made from did + subject + infinitive without ‘to’.
Did you like living in Japan?
What did your children do there?
We can use short answers:
Did you go to Anjali’s party last night? Yes, I did. / No, I didn’t.
Take note: spelling changes
Some regular verbs end in -ed, but have some spelling changes in the past simple.
stop – stopped
travel – travelled
marry – married
study - studied
Take note: time expressions
We often use the past simple with time expressions like yesterday, last month, six years ago, when I was a child.
Did you travel a lot when you were young?
He married Sonya three years ago.
Irregular verbs
Infinitive - Past simple - Past participle
fall - fell - fallen
feel - felt - felt
get - got - got
go - went - gone/been
have - had - had
hurt - hurt - hurt
keep - kept - kept
put - put - put
run - ran - run
take - took - taken
tell - told - told
