Past Continuous
Past Continuous jest czasem bardzo podobnym do Present Continuous z tym, że wyraża czynność trwającą określony czas w przeszłości. Różnica tkwi w wyrazie być to be - zamiast formy teraźniejszej używamy formy czasu przeszłego. Past Continuous jest trybem niedokonanym.
liczba pojedyncza liczba mnoga
1 osoba I was we were
2 osoba you were you were
3 osoba he was
she was
it was they were
Do tego dokładamy czasownik z końcówką -ing i zdanie w Past Continuous gotowe.
Tom was writing the letter all day yesterday. Tom pisał list przez cały wczorajszy dzień.
What were you doing on Friday? Co robiliście w piątek?
Pytanie tworzymy przez inwersję:
Was Tom writing the letter all day yesterday? Czy Tom pisał list przez cały wczorajszy dzień?
Przeczenie? Tutaj wstawiamy nasze nieśmiertelne not, najczęściej w formie wasn't, weren't
was not » wasn't
were not » weren't
Tom wasn't writing the letter all day yesterday. Tom nie pisał listu przez cały wczorajszy dzień.
Czasu Past Continuous używamy do mówienia o wydarzeniach trwających w określonym momencie w przeszłości.
One summer morning at 9:00 Josh was picking apples.
Bardzo często do opisu, kiedy dana czynność trwała, używamy drugiego zdania w Past Simple. (Czynność trwająca przerwana jednorazowym wydarzeniem). W takim przypadku bardzo pomocne są słowa:
when kiedy
while podczas gdy
I was watching TV when the telephone rang.
Jane was having a shower when suddenly someone knocked at the door.
Możemy także wyrazić dwie czynności, które trwały jednocześnie:
Mark was taking a bath when Sue was lying in bed and waiting for him.
They were talking loudly while Mary was trying to listen to the news on the radio.
Czynność, która w sposób ciągły wypełniała jakiś okres w przeszłości:
I was learning all Sunday.
They were climbing all day to the top.
Opis stopniowego rozwoju sytuacji:
It was getting colder.
Typowe okoliczniki czasu to:
Those days, then, at that time, yesterday at 6:00
Compare:
At 9:00 he was having a shower. He had a shower an hour ago.
Explain the difference:
I was leaving when Miss Murphy entered the shop.
I left when Miss Murphy entered the shop.
When I was getting off the train, I remembered my umbrella.
When I got off the train, I remembered my umbrella.
Mandy was making a cake yesterday.
Mandy made a cake yesterday.
As the fire was dying out, it was getting colder.
As the fire died out, it got colder.
Exercises
I Insert the suitable form of the verb.
1. I ______________PLAY the piano all day yesterday.
2. She _____________TALK to her friend when I saw her.
3. They _____________ SWIM when they were at the lake.
4. I ________________READ a book when I heard the noise.
5. She________________ THINK about him last night.
6. She______________ PLAY tennis when we came.
7. She hurt herself while she ________________ PLAY soccer.
8. I fell down when I ________________ DANCE .
9. Tim got hurt when he _____________ CUT the bread.
10. Ben _______________ HAVE lunch when the phone rang.
11. When I went out the sun ________________ SHINE .
12. The boy fell down when he ______________ RUN .
13. She _____________ WALK when it started to rain.
14. The light went out while I ________________ READ a book.
15. The students _______________ STUDY hard all the evening.
16. I _______________ DRIVE for five hours yesterday.
17. We _______________ DANCE at the disco all the night.
II Make a negative.
1. They were playing golf yesterday.
2. She was drinking milk in the morning.
3. The children were running around the house.
4. The girls were laughing a lot tonight.
5. The dog was barking at the cat.
III Ask a question
1. Tom was playing football when he was younger.
2. Maggie was swimming a lot today.
3. We were skiing all day yesterday.
4. Ted was cutting the bread when he hurt himself.
5. Mary was skating when she fell down.
IV Ask about the underlined part of the sentence.
1. Mary was watching TV in her bedroom.
2. Tom was working in the office.
3. Mr Brown was drinking some water as he was thirsty.
4. Bob was playing football with his friends.
5. Ann was studying as she had an exam.
V Choose the correct verb form.
I saw/was seeing a good programme on TV last night.
While I shopped/was shopping this morning, I lost/was losing my wallet.
Last week the police stopped/were stopping Alan because he drove/was driving at over eighty miles an hour.
“How did you break/were you breaking your leg?”
“I skied/was skiing and I hit/was hitting a tree.”
VI Past Simple or Past Continuous? Provide the correct form of the verb.
While Chris ___________ (read) a book, I ______________ (made) a quick phone call.
During the break the two businessmen ____________ (sit), ______________ (drink), and ____________ (read) “The Times”.
Who ___________ (see) the accident?
His parents _____________ (get) to know each other while they _______________ (cross) the Baltic Sea on a ferry.
Why ______________ (you not feed) the dog while we __________ (be) out?
They ______________ (discuss) their plans all week.
They ______________ (still dance) when it ____________ (start) to dawn.
VII What were you doing yesterday at 6:00, 8:30, 10:45, 2:00, 4:30, 7:00 and 9:00?
VIII Write sentences in past continuous with the following verbs:
Play use draw call run ride