Past simple

Usually, the past simple is the first past tense which you will learn when you receive English lessons. This one is also the easiest of all the past tenses, so let's dive in!

 

The past simple is used for the following purposes:

- for single, completed events in the past.

  - He sat down and ordered a coffee.

- for completed time periods in the past.

  - Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa.

- for sequences of completed actions in the past.

  - I went to the cinema yesterday.

 

When we want to make a sentence with the past simple we use the past tense of a verb:

Regular verb: verb + ed (e.g. walk > walked)

Irregular verb: 2nd column (e.g. sleep > slept)

 

If you want to use the past simple, it is important that you know the key words of it. Obviously, the past simple refers to the past so the key words also indicate the past. A few of them are:

- Yesterday

- Last week/year

- In 1989

- A month ago  

 

You are now going to practice with the past simple.

NOTE: click on 'leermethode' below in the Quizlet and then choose 'test'.
That is the part which is mandatory. The other options can be used as practice.