The Past Simple tense is sometimes called the "preterite tense". We can use several tenses and forms to talk about the past, but the Past Simple tense is the one we use most often.

In this lesson we look at the structure and use  of the Past Simple tense, followed by a quiz  to check your understanding.

How do we make the Past Simple tense?

There are two basic structures for the Past Simple tense:

1. Positive sentences

subject+main verb
  Past Simple

2. Negative and question sentences

subject+auxiliary do+main verb
  conjugated in Past Simple  
didbase

Look at these examples with the main verbs go ( irregular ) and work (regular):

 subjectauxiliary verb main verb 
+I  wentto school.
You  workedvery hard.
-Shedidnotgowith me.
Wedidnotworkyesterday.
?Didyou goto London?
Didthey workat home?

From the above table, notice the following points...

For positive sentences:

  • There is no auxiliary verb.
  • The main verb is conjugated in the Past Simple, invariable: -ed (or irregular)

For negative and question sentences:

  • The auxiliary is conjugated in the Past Simple, invariable: did
  • The main verb is invariable in base form: base
  • For negative sentences, we insert not  between the auxiliary verb and main verb.
  • For question sentences, we exchange  the subject and the auxiliary verb.
Emphatic did
Normally, for positive sentences we do not use the auxiliary did . But if we want to emphasize (stress) something, or contradict something, we may use it. For example: "I didn't use a spellchecker but I did use a dictionary." Here are some more examples:
  • "Why didn't you go to the party?" / "I did go."
  • It did seem a bit strange.
  • After drinking it I did in fact feel better.

Past Simple with main verb be

The structure of the Past Simple with the main verb be is:

subject+main verb be
  conjugated in Past Simple
was, were

Look at these examples with the main verb be:

 subjectmain verb be  
+I, he/she/itwas here.
You, we, theywere in London.
-I, he/she/itwasnotthere.
You, we, theywerenothappy.
?WasI, he/she/it right?
Wereyou, we, they late?

From the above table, notice the following points...

  • There is no auxiliary verb, even for questions and negatives.
  • The main verb (be) is conjugated in the Past Simple: was, were
  • For negative sentences, we insert not  after the main verb.
  • For question sentences, we exchange  the subject and the main verb.

How do we use the Past Simple tense?

We use the Past Simple tense to talk about an action or a situation - an event - in the past. The event can be short or long.

Here are some short  events with the Past Simple:

The car exploded  at 9.30am yesterday.
She went  to the door.
We did not hear  the telephone.
Did you see  that car?
pastpresentfuture
 
  
The action is in the past.  

Here are some long  events with the Past Simple tense:

I lived  in Bangkok for 10 years.
The Jurassic period lasted  about 62 million years.
We did not sing  at the concert.
Did you watch  TV last night?
pastpresentfuture
 
  
The action is in the past.  

Notice that it does not matter how long ago the event is: it can be a few minutes or seconds in the past, or millions of years in the past. Also it does not matter how long the event is. It can be a few milliseconds (car explosion) or millions of years (Jurassic period). We use the Past Simple tense when:

  • the event is in the past
  • the event is completely finished
  • we say (or understand) the time and/or place  of the event
In general, if we say the past time or place  of the event, we must use the Past Simple tense; we cannot use the present perfect.

Here are some more examples:

  • I lived  in that house when I was young.
  • He didn't like  the movie.
  • What did you eat  for dinner?
  • John drove  to London on Monday.
  • Mary did not go  to work yesterday.
  • Did you play  tennis last week?
  • I was  at work yesterday.
  • We were  not late (for the train).
  • Were  you angry?

Note that when we tell a story, we usually use the Past Simple. We may start with the Past Continuous tense to "set the scene", but we almost always use the Past Simple tense for the action. Look at this example of the beginning of a story:

"The wind was howling around the hotel and the rain was pouring down. It was  cold. The door opened  and James Bond entered . He took off his coat, which was  very wet, and ordered  a drink at the bar. He sat down in the corner of the lounge and quietly drank his..."
This page shows the use of the Past Simple tense to talk about past events. But note that there are some other uses for the Past Simple, for example in conditional or if sentences.

sources : Original Link