USE THE PAST SIMPLE OR PAST CONTINUOUS FORM OF THE VERBS IN

BRACKETS TO COMPLETE THE PASSAGE ABOUT JEANS.

Levi Strauss 1. .. (live) in California in 1849 when gold was discovered. He
2. . (be) a young man who 3. . (not have) much money and he 4. .. (look)
for a way to earn some. Thousands of people 5. . (go) to California hoping to
become rich. At first, Levi 6. .. (try) to sell them a heavy material, but nobody 7.
.. (buy) it. One day while Levi 8. . (watch) the men at the mines, he 9. .
(notice) that their thin trousers were torn at the knees. He 10. . (have) a brilliant
idea. He 11. . (know) that the men 12. . (not know) how to mend their trousers
by themselves. So Levi 13. . (make) his cloth into trousers and the men 14. .
(buy) them immediately. Levi Strausss trousers 15. . (become) known as Levis.
For over a hundred years after that, people 16. . (wear) jeans not because
they were in fashion, but because they 17. .. (be) good for work. It was economical
to wear them because they 18. . (not tear) easily. Today, jeans are designed by top
designers. They are one of the most fashionable items of clothing around. But if Levi
Strauss were alive, he wouldnt believe that teenagers today actually want to buy jeans
that are torn at the knees!

COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING SENTENCES WITN THE PAST SIMPLE

OR PAST CONTINUOUS OF THE VERB IN BRACKETS.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

I .(have) a bath, when the phone (ring).

We .(drive) home, when our car suddenly..(stop).
Kim..(walk) across the park, when it(begin) to rain.
Mick .(go) up the stairs when the lights (go) out.
I ..(pick) up the suitcase, when the handle.(fall) off.
Simon and Chris ..(have) dinner, when Danny (come)
to see them.

PUT THE VERBS IN BRACKETS IN THE PAST SIMPLE OR THE PAST

CONTINUOUS.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

The guard ..(enter) the cell as he .(dig) the tunnel.

When they(find) her she.(cut) a hole in the fence.
He .(arrive) when I ..(try) to phone him.
I (walk) in the woods when I (hear) a shot.
He .(fall) over as he ..(cross) the road.

Complete the dialogue.

1. A __________________________(stay) in last night?

B No, I didnt. I went out.
2. A Where _______________________________(you/go) ?
B I went to the cinema.
3. A What film ______________________________(you/see) ?
B Aladdin.
4. A Who _______________________________(you/go) with ?
B With some friends and their children.
5. A What ___________________________ (you/do)after that ?
B We went home.
2. Complete with the verbs in the past tense.
1. Hilary ______________ (buy) an expensive new stereo on Friday.
2. I ________________ (read) an interesting book last night.
3. Marconi ________________ (invent) the radio in 1902.
4. When I was at school I ________________ (study) Latin.
5. We __________________ (play) cards for hours yesterday.
6. They ___________________ (see) that new French film last Sunday.
3. Complete the dialogue with did(nt), was(nt) or were.
1. ___________ you at home last Saturday? Yes, I _______.
2. And ________ James go out? Yes, he ________.
3. __________ he go bowling? No, he _________.
4. __________ he go to the football match? Yes, he ___________.
5. __________ it good? No, it __________.
6. __________ he come home late again? Yes, he __________.
7. And __________ you angry? Yes, I __________!

Complete these sentences. Use the verbs in brackets in the past simple or past
continuous tense.
1. Yesterday I ____________________ an accident, while I ____________________ a
driving lesson.(have/have).
2. I ________________________ along the road when a dog ___________________
out in front of me.(drive/run)
3. When I __________________ the dog, I ______________ suddenly.(see/ stop)
4. Another driver ______________________ me when it ___________________.
(follow/happen)
5. When I ___________________, he ___________________ into the back of my car.
(stop/drive)
Make these sentences negative.
1. I went to London yesterday.
2. They were watching a film.
3. Im playing football on Saturday.
4. Janes from Australia.
5. Matthew was on holiday last week.
6. Ive got your book.

COMPLETE THIS BIOGRAPHY OF WALT DISNEYS EARLY CAREER BY

CHANGING THE VERBS IN BRACKETS INTO THE PAST SIMPLE.
Walt Disney _________________ (be) born on December 5th, 1901. In his
teens he _________________ (begin) an art course but World War I
_________________ (break) out and he _________________ (drive) for the Red
3

Cross in Europe. When he _________________ (get) back to America he

_________________ (meet) the artist Ub Iwerks and they _________________ (go)
into business together.
They_________________ (make) a series of short cartoons but
_________________ (lose) all their money. Luckily, Walts brother, Roy,
_________________ (give) them money to start up again. The first talking
picture_________________ (come) out in 1927 and Disney _________________
(see) that sound _________________ (hold) the key to the future of film. He
_________________ (build) on this success with other cartoons but soon
_________________ (feel) ready for something more ambitious. He
_________________ (take) the biggest risk of his career and _________________
(spend) a fortune on a full-length cartoon. He finally _________________ (bring)
out Snow White in 1935, which the public _________________ (pay) millions of
dollars to see. By the time he was forty, Disney and his creations
_________________ (be) household names around the world.
Past simple or past continuous.
In 1961, the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin _________________ (become) the first
man in space.
The spaceship ___________________ (take off) from Kazakhastan on April 12. Half an
hour later, he ___________________ (fly) round the earth at a speed of 28,000 km/h
and looking down at the earth 327 kilometres below him. He ____________________
(orbit) the planet only once and then ________________ (descend) back to earth again.
Gagarin never _________________ (fly) in space again. He ___________________
(die) seven years later when his plane __________________ (crash) near Moscow.
Complete the crossword with the past simple of the verbs.
Across

Down

2 feel

1 are

5 become

3 go

6 have

4 say

7 find

5 buy

8 tell
9 get
1
2
3

Write sentences with past simple or past continuous.

1. When Diana (leave) work it (rain).
2. She (kill) a cat when she (drive) to her friends house.
3. Suddenly she (see) a black van. It (follow) her.
4. When Diana (arrive) she (get) out of the car and (ring) the doorbell.
5. Daniel (cook) when he (hear) the doorbell.
Answer these questions.
1. What was happening when you got home last night?
2. What were you wearing when you woke up this morning?
3. What were you thinking about when you came to class on the first day?
4. How were you feeling when you go to class today?
Complete the sentences with the Past Simple or the Past Continuous.
1. I (see) a very good programme on TV last night.
2. While

(shop)

this

morning

(lose) my wallet.
3. Last week the police (stop) Alan in his car because he
(drive) at over eighty miles an hour.
4. How (you/cut) your finger?

5. I (cook) and I (drop) the

knife.
6. When

(arrive)

at

the

party,

everyone

(have) a good time.

7. (you / have) a good time last night?
8. While

(go)

to

work

this

morning,

(meet) an old friend.

9. I

(not want) to get up this morning. It

(rain) and it was cold, and my bed was so warm.

10. I (listen) to the news on the radio when the phone
(ring).
11. But when I (pick) up the phone, there was no one
there.
12. I

(say)

hello

(not

say)

to

the

children,

anything

but

because

they
they

(watch) television.

Turn this text into the past tense.

There are a lot of old houses an castles in Britain. People often believe that there are
ghosts in these buildings. There are also stories about monsters. The most famous

monster is the Loch ness Monster. This loch is in Scotland. It is very deep and the water
is very dark. People see strange things there and a lot of people believe that a kind of
dinosaur still lives there. In South-West England, some people see a very large black cat
as big as a lion. They call it the Beast of Dartmoor.

Fill in the Past Simple of the verbs from each list. Try to use each verb once.
Ask be call feel give send take tell
My grandmother ..ill yesterday. She ..Emergency Services and
..for help. First she..them her address. Then she ..them
what..wrong. Emergency Services..her an ambulance to my
grandmothers house. They ..her to the hospital.
Be decide eat feel listen try work want
Last night I ..very sad. I ..to fell better. First I ..to sleep,
but that (not) .. . Then I ..a big meal, but I still ..quite sad.
Finally I ..to listen to music. Soon I felt much better.
Be call carry go have talk travel walk want wear
Florence Nightingale ..a rich girl who ..a good life.
She..beautiful clothes and ..to parties most nights. She really
..to be a nurse. In 1854, she ..to Turkey to take care of British
7

soldiers. Florence..around the hospital every night and ..to the

soldiers who couldnt sleep. She always ..a lamp. Therefore, the soldiers
..her The Lady with the Lamp.

Complete the following sentences with the right tense of the verb between brackets.
1. I (not go) to the party last Saturday.
2. She (often / go) to the cinema.
3. He (always / get up) at 7.00.
4. Peter (break) his leg last year.
5. We (never / eat) meat.
6. John (meet) her father yesterday.
7. you (go) to the cinema
yesterday?
8. When she (arrive)?
9. Who (go) to the park last Saturday?
10. What time you usually (get up)?
11. Peter (come) last month.
12. Peter (come) here everyday.
13. She (not feel) well yesterday.
14. He (be) at the party last Sunday.
15. I (go) for a walk on Sundays.
16. What time he (get up) yesterday?
17. When Diana (leave) work it (rain).
18. She (kill) a cat when she (drive) to her friends house.
19. Suddenly she (see) a black van. It (follow) her.

20. When Diana (arrive) she (get)

out of the car and (ring) the doorbell.
21. Daniel (cook) when he (hear) the
doorbell.