Past continuous

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The past continuous (also called past progressive) is one of the continuous verb forms in English. The past continuous tense mainly describes actions that are in progress at a particular time in the past time frame. [1] [2]


Past Continuous Tense

Affirmative sentences

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Affirmative sentences in the past continuous are formed using verb be (was / were) + base verb -ing. [3]

  • I was eating.
  • She was eating.
  • He was eating.
  • It was eating.
  • We were eating.
  • You were eating.
  • They were eating.

Negative sentences

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Negative sentences are formed by adding not (or the short form n't) to the past tense of the verb be.

  • I was not eating.
  • She wasn't eating.
  • He was not eating.
  • It was not eating.
  • We weren't eating.
  • You were not eating.
  • They weren't eating.

Questions

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Yes/no question are formed using the past form of the verb be (was / were) + subject + base verb-ing.

Wh-questions begin with one of the wh-question words. (Wh-question words are: what, where, when, why, who, which, whose, how.)

  • Was I eating your pizza?
  • Were you having fun?
  • Was she sleeping?
  • Was it raining outside?
  • Why was she crying?
  • When were they coming?

References

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  1. "Past Continuous Tense | Ginseng English | Learn English". Ginseng English. Retrieved 2022-06-04.
  2. "Past Continuous Tense: Rules And Examples". Thesaurus.com. 2021-05-11. Retrieved 2022-06-04.
  3. "Past Continuous Tense | ENGLISH PAGE". www.englishpage.com. Retrieved 2022-06-04.