Past Continuous

1.The children ________ outside.

   were playing

   was playing

2. The dog ________ at us.

   were barking

   was barking

3. My teacher ________ the exercise to me.

   was explaining

   were explaining

4. I ________ to my mp3 player.

   were listening

   was listening

5. Those people ________ towards the library.

   were walking

   was walking

6. The cook ________ a tasty meal.

   were preparing

   was preparing

7. I ________ to fix my computer.

   were trying

   was trying

8. My friend and I ________ basketball.

   was playing

   were playing
9. The police ________ the thief.

   were chasing

   was chasing

10. My sister and my brother ________.

   was singing

   were singing

1. I spoke to my teacher. I was   to my teacher.

2. She listened to the song. She was   to the song.

3. My friend laughed at my joke. My friend was   at my joke.

4. She was silly. She was   silly.

5. I sang. I was   yesterday.

6. They did their homework. They were   their homework.

7. My boss planned a meeting. My boss was   a meeting.

8. We had a party. We were   a party.

9. The band played a beautiful song. The band was   a beautiful song.

10. I tried to explain. I was   to explain.

Past Simple

Yesterday I (to have)   a really bad day. I (to wake)   up at 9 o'clock because I (to

forget)   to set my alarm clock the night before. I (get)   up as fast as I (can)   

and I (to put)  on some clothes. I ran into the kitchen and (to make)   myself a cup of
coffee. Then I (to drink) the coffee very fast and I (to run)  to my car. It (to be)  
a terrible morning!

Fill in each blank with the SIMPLE PAST form of the verb. These are IRREGULAR VERBS.

1. He   his wife to the concert. (to bring)

2. She   alone. (to come)

3. I   a great time yesterday. (to have)

4. My cousins   to India during the summer. (to go)

5. My sister   beautifully when she was younger. (to sing)

6. The police   the thief. (to catch)

7. She   at home all evening. (to be)

8. My friend   seven bottles of beer. (to drink)

9. I   her an email. (to write)

10. My husband   me flowers for my birthday. (to give)

EX: She  came  here yesterday. (come)

1. She   me her name. (tell)

2. I   him yesterday. (see)
3. My brother   me last night. (call)

4. I   to speak to my teacher. (want)

5. My parents   me a present. (give)

6. The student   to understand. (try)

7. We   to the concert. (go)

8.   you born in Canada? (be)

9. No, I   born in the United States. (be)

10. They   to the teacher. (speak)

Choose which verb tense (simple past or past continuous) completes each sentence in a logical, natural-
sounding way:

1. I ________. I didn't hear you come in.

a. was sleeping
b. slept

2. I ________ to see her twice, but she wasn't home.

a. was coming
b. came

3. P1: What ________? P2: I was watching TV.

a. did you do
b. were you doing

4. Robin Hood was a character who ________ from the rich and gave to the poor.
a. stole
b. was stealing
 5. P1: Hey, did you talk to her? P2: Yes, I ________ to her.
a. was talking
b. talked

6. I ________ home very late last night.

a. came
b. was coming

7. How long ________ the flu?

a. did you have
b. were you having

8. P1: ________ a good time in Brazil? P2: Yes, I had a blast!

a. Were you having
b. Did you have

9. We ________ breakfast when she walked into the room.

a. had
b. were having

10. Last month I decided to buy a new car, and today I finally ________ it.
a. bought
b. was buying

11. I ________ when the waitress took my plate.

a. still ate
b. was still eating

Choose which verb tense (simple past or past continuous) completes each sentence in a
logical, natural-sounding way:

1. I ________ a book when I heard a noise outside.

a. was reading
b. read

2. P1: Is there any more Coke in the fridge? P2: No, Theresa ________ it all last night.
a. was drinking
b. drank

3. When I came home last night, my roommate ________ at the neighbor.

a. was yelling
b. yelled

4. He ________ everything that I told him.

a. understood
b. was understanding

5. P1: Does your brother still go to college? P2: No, he ________ last year.
a. was graduating
b. graduated

6. I hurt my hand while I ________ basketball.

a. played
b. was playing

7. My grandmother ________ about all of her grandchildren.

a. was caring
b. cared

8. I ________ a shower when I heard the phone ring.

a. was taking
b. took

9. P1: What was the woman doing? P2: She ________ about the price of the vegetables.
a. complained
b. was complaining

10. I can't believe that you actually ________ her to meet your parents.
a. took
b. were taking

Choose which verb tense (simple past or past continuous) completes each sentence in a
logical, natural-sounding way:
1. I __________ in the pool when I saw her coming towards me.
a. was swimming
b. swam

2. Howard ________ the wall when he heard the phone ring.

a. was painting
b. painted

3. I heard you come in, even though I ________ to music at that time.
a. was listening
b. listened

4. David was arguing with his girlfriend, so I ________ the door.

a. was closing
b. closed

5. I ________ my ankle while I was hiking in the mountains last year.

a. was spraining
b. sprained

6. James ________ towards the store when he saw a man holding a kitten.
a. walked
b. was walking

7. Victoria ________ her grandchildren about her experiences, when her oldest grandchild
asked a question.
a. was telling
b. told

8. Patricia was running towards the store, when she ________ that she had forgotten her
wallet at home.
a. was remembering
b. remembered

9. I was shopping for a new computer when I ________ a call from work.
a. got
b. was getting

10. We ________ to my aunt's house when we got a flat tire.

a. drove
b. were driving