ENGLISH IV
PAST SIMPLE
The past simple is used for sentences in which the idea, act or state has already
been completed. It could have ended five minutes ago or five centuries ago, the
time of completion does not matter, the only important thing is that we are talking
about something that no longer happens or exists in the present.
To emphasize that it is a fait accompli, it can be accompanied by context, for
example: A year ago, I ate in that restaurant.
In 1970, The Beatles split up.
When you were a child you liked apples.
Note: These context sentences can go before or after the main sentence. For
example: I ate in that restaurant a year ago.
There are verbs whose past tense does not always express a past situation. The
best example of this is could, the past tense of can, which is used to formalize
questions, for example:
Could you close the door, please? (could you close the door,
please?) How is the past simple formed?
In English there are two types of verbs: regular and irregular. In this article you will
see first the regular verbs and then the irregular verbs.
There are some rules for the formation of regular verbs in English based on what
the last letters of the infinitive verb are. The two endings for the formation of the
past simple are - d or -ed and depend on the following:
The -d is for verbs whose last letter is e. For example:
Close - Closed: She closed the store yesterday.
Believe - Believed: Last time, you believed that I had lied to you. (Last time, you
believed that I had lied to you.)
The -ed is for verbs in any other ending. For example:
Jump - Jumped: All the people jumped when they heard that song at the
concert. Start - Started: I started to do exercise when I was 10 years old.
When there is a and at the end, after a vowel, just add -ed. For
example: Play - Played: She played like a pro in the final match.
Pray - Prayed: My grandmother prayed for me when I was in
hospital. When there is no vowel before the y, it is changed to i+
ed. For example: Study - Studied: I studied all night for the last
test.
Try - Tried: They tried to repair car all the morning.
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
ENGLISH IV
In other cases, the last consonant of the word must be repeated to add the -ed
formula. For example:
Stop - Stopped: You stopped just in time, before the train crossed.
Plan - Planned: The musicians planned their last concert almost a year ago.
How to form the past simple in regular verbs in negative and interrogative
forms?
To construct sentences in the past simple in the negative form, you have to use the
auxiliary do/does, which is the only one that conjugates in the past. The main verb
remains in its infinitive form. For example:
Affirmative: I went to your house on my bicycle.
Negative: I didn't go to your house on my bicycle.
Affirmative: They practiced their play all weekend.
Negative: They didn't practice their play all weekend.
As for interrogative sentences, again the auxiliary do/does must be used. As in the
negative form, only the auxiliary is conjugated in the past tense, while the main
verb remains in its infinitive form.
Affirmative: You remembered the correct answer just before the end of test
time. Interrogative: Did you remember the correct answer just before the end
of test time. Affirmative: Your dog destroyed my new shoes in five minutes.
Interrogative: Did your dog destroy my new shoes in five minutes? (Did your dog
destroy my new tennis shoes in five minutes).
They are called irregular because they modify their stem completely, either in their
past simple or past participle form or both. Unlike regular verbs, you don't have to
include -d or -ed, but their spelling changes significantly. In this case there is no
choice but to learn the different forms, but with reading and practice the task is
easie
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
ENGLISH IV
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
ENGLISH IV
Pronunciation of regular verbs in English
Although the writing of regular verbs (-d / -ed) may be simple, their pronunciation
does require distinctions. In principle, the pronunciation of these verbs can be
divided into three groups:
Group 1
In this group, the written ending -ed of verbs in the simple past tense is pronounced
/id/ As when pronounced hid, in which cases does it apply?
For verbs in the present tense ending ent or te. Here are some
examples: Start - started - It is pronounced /star-tid/.
Visit - visited - Pronounced /vih-sih-tid/
Rent - rented - Pronounced /rehn-tid/
Repeat - repeated - Pronounced /ree-pee-tid/
Create - created - Pronounced /cree-ey-tid/
Hate - hated - Pronounced /hey-tid/
Regular verbs that in the present tense end in -do-de are also pronounced as id, for
example:
Crowd - crowded - Pronounced /krow - did/
Fold - folded - Pronounced /fold - did/
Provide - provided - Pronounced /pro - viy - did/
Decide - decided - Pronounced /dee - siy - did/
Group 2
This rule does not have to do with how the verb is written in the present tense, but
how it sounds. When they are verbs whose ending, when pronounced, produces a
dull sound, that is, the vocal cords do not vibrate. These sounds can be: p, k, ch,
sh, f, s, h. In this case, when we add the suffix -ed it will have a t sound, as when
we pronounce the word cat. Here are some examples:
Stop - stopped - Pronounced /stopt/
Like - liked - Pronounced /laikt/
Park - parked - Pronounced /parkt/
Group 3
This group of English verbs is also defined by the sound produced by the verb in
the present tense, in this case, unlike the second group, its ending produces a
sound in which the vocal cords do vibrate (think of the buzzing of a bee): b, g, i, z,
m, l, etc. The -ed of past tense verbs sound comod. For example:
Hug - hugged - Pronounced /hugd/
Cry - cried - Pronounced /crayd/
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
ENGLISH IV
Roar - roared - Pronounced /rord/
A characteristic of the second and third groups of past tense verbs is that almost all
of them have only one syllable.
PAST SIMPLE
The past simple is used for sentences in which the idea, act or state has already
been completed. It could have ended five minutes ago or five centuries ago, the
time of completion does not matter, the only important thing is that we are talking
about something that no longer happens or exists in the present.
Exercices: Make the past simple, positive, negative or
question 1. I _____________ (not/drink) any beer last night.
2. She ___________ (get on) the bus in the centre of the city.
3. What time ____________ (he/get up) yesterday?
4. Where ____________ (you/get off) the train?
5. I ______________ (not/change) trains at Victoria.
6. We ______________ (wake up) very late.
7. What ______________ (he/give) his mother for Christmas?
8. I _______________ (receive) £300 when my uncle died.
9. We _____________ (not/use) the computer last night.
10. _______________ (she/make) good coffee?
11. They ______________ (live) in Paris.
12. She ______________ (read) the newspaper yesterday.
13. I ______________ (not/watch) TV.
14. He _____________ (not/study) for the exam.
15. ______________ (he/call) you?
16. _______________ (I/forget) something?
17. What time ________________ (the film/start)?
18. He ________________ (have) a shower.
19. Why _________________ (you/come)?
20. _______________ (he/go) to the party?
21. The young man _______(take) out his wallet and _______(pay) the bill. 22.
When Lucy _______(go) to the interview, she _______(wear) her best suit. 23.
We _______(leave) the motorway and _______(drive) for an hour on quiet
country roads.
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
ENGLISH IV
24. I _______(think) I _______(know) my irregular verbs, but now I'm not so
sure! 25. As soon as I _______(meet) Doris, I _______(know) she (be)
someone special. 26. Tolstoy _______(write) some great novels, but he never
_______(win) a Nobel Prize. 27. The nurse _______(put) the little boy to bed
and _______(speak) to him softly. 28. When they _______(hear) the fire alarm,
everybody _______ (run) out of the building.
29. Last year, the company _______ (build) a new factory, which _______ (cost)
millions of dollars.
30. When Jose _______ (break) his arm, the doctor _______ (give) him two
weeks off work.
31. We really _______(enjoy) the game last Sunday.
32. _______(Marco / win) the golf competition?
33. They _______(not play) very well yesterday. They lost the
match. 34. How many goals _______(your team / score) in the
first half? 35. Sandra _____________ (not want) to go rowing
with me.
36. _______(they / go) to the swimming pool yesterday?
37. I _______(buy) a new baseball cap last week.
38. James _______(stop) his car in front of the sports shops
39. I _______my maths homework yesterday. (to do)
40. _______Susan _______ to England by plane? (to go)
41. They _______ a farm two weeks ago. (to visit)
42. Jenny and Peggy_______ their brother. (not/to help)
43. The children _______ at home last weekend. (not/to be)
44. When_______ you _______ this wonderful skirt? (to design)
45. My mother _______ into the van. (not/to crash)
46. The boys_______ the mudguards of their bicycles. (to
take off) 47. _______ you _______your aunt last week? (to
phone)
48. He _______ milk at school. (not/to drink)
49. They_______ (not play) very well yesterday. They lost the
match. 50. How many goals_______ (your team / score) in the
first half?
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
ENGLISH IV
4IM10 Teacher: Margarita Hernández Ortega
