Tensed about Tenses

Dearest students,

As promised ^^ Past tenses

Simple Past = An action that already happened and ended and time is very important, for instance, last year, night, etc or can show one action happened n was immediately followed by another action, For ex: When he saw the tiger, he pretended to be dead. (immediate response~ see, pretended)

Past progressive = was/were+ verb+ing
~An action was in the middle of happening at a certain time in the past. ex: I was sleeping at 12 a.m. last night means at 12 a.m. i was already deep in my sleep, in the MIDDLE of the action.
~ 2 past actions were happening together without interruption from either one. For ex: While the teacher was teaching in class, her students were taking down notes. These 2 actions were in progress at the same time in the past.
~ 2 past actions but a shorter actually interrupted or happened during the progressive action. for ex: While Tom was trying to change the light bulb, he slipped and fell. So he was in the middle of changing the bulb when he actually slipped and fell.

Past Perfect~ to show Past Past ^^ to show an action/ situation in the past already happened but before that action, another action actually had happened much earlier. For Ex: It was midnight and she asked me to join her for supper. I didn't accept her invitation because I had taken a late dinner. (means dinner was taken before she asked you)

Past Perfect Progressive ~ to show 2 past actions and how long between these 2 actions that had both stopped. For ex: He promised to meet me at 2 p.m. yesterday and I waited for him and he finally came at 3.30 p.m. So how to express the duration of the waiting period? It should be: I had been waiting for him for 1 and  1/2 hours by the time he finally arrived! Means NO LONGER WAITING ^^

Any questions? If you know the reason why you use these tenses, it will help you use them more effectively ^^


Luv,
Ms Jasline