3 sentences with past continuous. Past Continuous - Past continuous tense in English. What is Past Continuous

Past Continuous (aka Past Progressive) is used to express a long action that takes place at a certain moment in the past. To understand when it is necessary to use this tense, examples of sentences in Past Continuous / Past Progressive will help you.

The Past Continuous (Past Progressive) education scheme is as follows:

Now you are completely ready to move on to studying examples of sentences in the Past Continuous. All sentences are taken from the original texts.

Past Continuous: examples of affirmative sentences with translation.

10 Examples Progressive in affirmative sentences with translation.

The baby was smiling up at her for the first time in his life. - The child smiled at her for the first time since his birth.
Nina was crying quietly in her chair. Ninochka was crying quietly in her chair.
She saw that he was watching her with quiet amusement. She saw that he was looking at her with pleasure.
Several people had gathered and were watching“People have already gathered around, excitedly watching what is happening.
He was making money, and he always talked of it with the air of a connoisseur. - He earned good money and always spoke about them with the air of a great connoisseur.
Robert had pulled out a notebook and was making Robert took out a notebook and wrote down something.
The thunderous noise of shooting was drawing The thunder of shots was approaching.
Dmitri and I were painting when Dmitri took a brush and painted my face. - Dmitry and I were painting when he grabbed a brush and painted my face.
while they were cooking the porridge, Dymov began quarrelling with his companions. - While the porridge was being cooked, Dymov began to quarrel with his comrades.
Her nostrils were flared as if she were smelling something awful. Her nostrils flared as if she were sniffing something repulsive.

Past Continuous: examples of negative sentences with translation.

10 examples of Past Progressive in negative sentences with translation.

Sally wasn'ttwatching TV at 7 pm last night. Sally didn't watch TV yesterday at 7 pm.
Mike wasn't wearing his uniform at work yesterday. Mike didn't wear a uniform at work yesterday.
It wasn't raining while we were playing tennis this morning. It didn't rain while we were playing tennis this morning.
They weren't having a good time at the party and decided to go home. They didn't have fun at the party and decided to go home.
The children were not laughing at the joker. The kids didn't laugh at the jokes.
Sorry, I wasn't listening. Can you say it again please? Sorry, I didn't listen. Can you repeat?
We weren't sleeping when the earthquake began. We were not sleeping when the earthquake started.
The children weren't sleeping though they had been told to. The children did not sleep, although they were ordered to.
I wasn't listening to the teacher and got a bad mark. I didn't listen to the teacher and got a bad mark.
Samuel wasn't sailing fast and was able to notice the drowning man. Samuel was not swimming fast, so he could see the drowning man.

Past Continuous: examples of interrogative sentences with translation.

10 examples of Past Progressive in interrogative sentences with translation.

What was Danny doing on this street? What was Danny doing on this street?
What was Tim doing while his wife was reading? What did Tim do while his wife was reading?
Were you listening while Daniel was talking? Did you listen when Daniel spoke?
What were you doing while you were waiting? What were you doing while you were waiting?
how fast Frank was driving when he had the accident? How fast was Fred driving before the collision?
why was John talking to Jill when I saw them in the cafe yesterday? Why was John talking to Jill when I saw them at the cafe yesterday?
Were you resting in the garden when the police came? — Were you resting in the garden when the police came?
Were you sleeping when Granny rank? You were sleeping when grandma called.
Was Sam painting again? Was Sam painting again?
What were they talking about? - What were they talking about?

I hope these examples of sentences in Past Continuous with translation were useful to you.

Past continuous is the past continuous tense English language. Its main meaning is a long-term action that took place at a certain moment in the past. Unlike , it expresses an action that happened in the past, not happened.

Past Continuous Education Scheme: Rules and Examples

Consider how sentences with the past long tense are constructed in three forms: affirmative, negative and interrogative.

1. Affirmative form: I was talking

Past Continuous in the affirmative form is formed with the help of a verb and a verb with an ending – ing, only the verb is changed to be. Accordingly, it can be in the form was or were.

Table with examples:

Example sentences with Past Continuous:

My dog was playing with a raccoon. My dog played with a raccoon.

My boss was yelling at me this morning - My boss yelled at me this morning.

I was thinking of you, when you came in - I thought about you when you came in.

She was working on this article from 9 to 12 - She worked on this article from 9 to 12.

2. Negative form: I was not talking

Negation is built using a particle not- add it after was or were.

Possible abbreviations: wasn't, weren't.

Examples:

Sorry, I was not listening. Sorry, I didn't listen.

The raccon wasn't playing, it was trying to hurt my dog! The raccoon wasn't playing, he was trying to hurt my dog!

Don't interrupt me, I wasn't talking to you - Don't interrupt me, I wasn't talking to you.

We werent trying to insult you, we were just discussing your opinion - We were not trying to offend you, we were just discussing your point of view.

3. Interrogative form: Was I talking?

AT interrogative forms e verb to be is placed before:

Examples:

was the water boiling now? - Is the water boiling now?

Were you ear dropping? - Did you eavesdrop?

was he cooking when I called? Was he cooking (food) when I called?

Were they playing chess this morning? Did they play chess in the morning?

Using the Past Continuous: when is the past continuous used?

Past Continuous is used in the following cases:

The action took place at a certain moment in the past.

In this case, the moment is usually specified using:

a) time indications:

I was having my breakfast at nine. I had breakfast at nine o'clock.

We were not walking at midnight. We didn't walk at midnight.

b) another action:

I was sleeping when you turned on the TV. I was sleeping when you turned on the TV.

What were you doing when the earthquake started? What were you doing when the earthquake started? (What are you doing at the moment)

A long-term action that took place at a certain time in the past.

We can use the past long tense to express an action that did not take place at a certain moment in the past, but took place over a period of time.

I was writing a novel last winter. I wrote a novel last winter.

Jack was taking English lessons this year. This year, Jack was in English lessons.

Repetitive action with a negative connotation.

Past Continuous combined with adverbs like always, constantly(meaning "all the time") expresses an unpleasant, annoying action that happened regularly in the past. This turnover is typical for colloquial speech.

Past continuous is the long past tense of English. Used to indicate a process that took place some time in the past, while the exact time when the action took place must be indicated or it must be clear from the context of the sentence. Below are the rules for the formation of the Past Continuous in affirmative, negative and interrogative sentences, auxiliary words and examples of its use.

Education Past Continuous

Past Continuous in the affirmative sentence is formed with the help of the auxiliary verb was / were (this is the verb to be in the 2nd form) and the verbs in the first form with the addition of the ending -ing to it. The auxiliary verb was is only used in 1st and 3rd person singular, otherwise use were. Formula:

Noun + was / were + verb in form 1 with -ing added to it

An example of a declarative sentence:

When you called I was taking a shower. I was taking a shower when you called.

I was watching TV at 5 o'clock yesterday. I was watching TV at five o'clock yesterday.

In the negative sentence, the auxiliary verb was / were is also used, but the share not is added to them at the end. Education rule:

Noun + was / were + not + verb in form 1 with -ing added to it

At the same time, was / were can merge with the not share and form was not / were not. Objection examples:

In the evening I was not watching TV. — I didn’t watch TV in the evening.

I was not walking on the street when you called me. I wasn't walking outside when you called me.

For creating interrogative sentence in the Past Continuous, the auxiliary verbs was and were are placed at the beginning of the sentence. rule:

Was / Were + noun + verb in 1 form with the addition of the ending -ing to it

Examples of interrogative sentences:

Were you sitting here at 8 o'clock in the morning? — Were you sitting here at 8:00 in the morning?

Was he doing his homework when I came? Was he doing his homework when I came?

Auxiliary words Past Continuous

In the Past Continuous, unlike past simple there are no pronounced auxiliary words. In fact, there are only three words and phrases that always use the past long.

cases, inwhichusedPast continuous

The following are cases in which the use of the Past Continuous is appropriate. There are five in total in English.

I use case: interrupted action in the past

Interrupted Action in the Past

The Past Continuous is used to denote prolonged action in the past that were interrupted. To indicate a short duration of action, Past Simple is used. AT this case a lengthy break can be valid or only as a time break. examples:

I was watching TV when she called. I was watching TV when she called.

I was listening to my iPod, so I didn't hear the fire alarm. — I listened to the iPod, and did not hear the fire alarm.

You were not listening to me when I told you to turn the oven off. You didn't listen to me when I told you to turn off the stove.

II use case: action in the past, which is tied to time

Specific Time as an Interruption

In this case, the Past Continuous is used to indicate an action, it is tied to any time in the past. examples:

Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner. I had dinner yesterday at 6:00 pm.

At midnight, we were still driving through the desert. At midnight we were still driving through the desert.

Yesterday at this time, I was sitting at my desk at work. Yesterday at the same time I was sitting at my desk at work.

Use Case III: Parallel Actions in the Past

Parallel Actions

The Past Continuous can be used to refer to two continuous actions in the past happening at the same time. Actions are parallel, and while is often used to link them. examples:

I was studying while he was making dinner. I was studying while he was cooking dinner.

Were you listening while he was talking? Did you listen when he spoke?

Thomas was not working, and I was not working either. Thomas didn't work and I didn't work either.

IV use case: atmosphere transfer

In rare cases, Past Continuous is used to convey the atmosphere of what action. For example:

When I walked into the office, several people were busily typing, some were talking on the phones, the boss was yelling directions, and customers were waiting to be helped. One customer was yelling at a secretary and waving his hands. Others were complaining to each other about the bad service. — When I entered the office, several people were busy typing, some were talking on the phone, the boss was yelling at everyone, and customers were waiting for help. One client yelled at the secretary and waved his arms. Others complained to each other about poor service.

Use Case V: Transferring Repetitive Actions and Annoyance

Repetition and Irritation with Always

Past Continuous can be used with the words always or constantly to convey your irritation with actions that often happened in the past. Similar to used to, but with a very negative connotation. The words always and constantly must always be placed between the auxiliary verb and the -ing verb. examples:

She was always coming to class late. She was always late for lessons.

He was constantly talking. He announced everyone. “He kept talking. It annoyed everyone.

I didn't like them because they were always complaining. I didn't like them because they always complained

The English language is rich at times. Among them, not the last place is occupied by Past Continuous Tense (Past long time), which is responsible for actions that lasted some period in the past. But this is not its only function: we will talk about the formula of education, use and time indicators further.

General information

The Past Continuous is translated into Russian as the Past Continuous. The name speaks for itself. Past indicates that the action took place in the past, and Continuous is an aspect that describes the duration, the duration of the action.

There is no such time in Russian. Therefore, for Russian-speaking people, it is not very clear and causes difficulties. As a rule, Past Continuous is translated using imperfective verbs in the past tense.

Design

The Past Continuous is a compound time. Like the Present Continuous (Present Continuous), this tense form is formed with the help of two verbs: the auxiliary to be and the main verb, to which the ending -ing is attached. But since the Past Continuous speaks of the duration of the action in the past, and not in the present, the auxiliary verb to be will also be in the past tense - was / were. All features of the formation of affirmative, negative and interrogative forms are presented in the following table:

Past continuous

Past long tense

Subjects + was/were + main verb + -ing

I was sleeping - I slept

You were sleeping - you were sleeping

He (she, it) was sleeping - he (she, it) slept

We were sleeping - we were sleeping

You were sleeping - you were sleeping

They were sleeping - they were sleeping

Subjects + was/were + not + main verb + -ing

I was not smiling - I didn't smile

You were smiling - you didn't smile

He (she, it) was not smiling - he (she, it) did not smile

We were not smiling - we were not smiling

You were not smiling - you were not smiling

They were not smiling - they did not smile

Was/were + subject + main verb + -ing?

Was I crying? - I cried?

Were you crying? - Did you cry?

Was he (she, it) crying? Did he (she, it) cry?

Were we crying? - Did we cry?

Were you crying? - Did you cry?

Were they crying? - Did they cry?

Past Continuous rules and usage examples

As can be seen from the above examples of verb conjugation in the Past Continuous, the grammatical formula for the formation of the form does not cause any particular difficulties. The main thing is to choose one of the forms of auxiliary verbs correctly. Difficulties arise in practice and relate to cases when the Past Continuous is used. To avoid problems in the future, the following rules of use are suggested:

To show an action that took place some time in the past. As a rule, the question of when exactly it began is not important for the speaker. The main thing is to highlight its presence in a given period of time:

At 7 o'clock yesterday she was drinking a cup of hot coffee. She was drinking hot coffee at 7 o'clock yesterday.

To emphasize the process itself rather than the action or subsequent result:

My sister was drawing the whole day. My sister has been painting all day.

To describe a short-term, short-lived situation in the past. The speaker clarifies, specifies when exactly this action took place:

His family was living in Japan for several months. – His family lived in Japan for several months.

AT complex sentences, where in one part Past Continuous (Past Continuous) is used to denote a long action, and in the other - Past Simple (Simple Past) to describe a short single action. The following unions connect the two parts till (until), until (until), before (before), as (while), after (after), when (when):

He was reading a newspaper before we entered the room. He was reading a newspaper before we entered the room.

Not all verbs in English can be used in the Past Continuous. Exceptions include state verbs (to love - love, to like - love, like, to hate - hate).

Time period notation

There are "marker words" for each tense form in English. The Past Continuous is no exception. Usually in sentences where the predicate is expressed by the verb in the past continuous, certain pointer words are used: