# World 1: Forest - Past continuous

Past continuous

The past continuous is used when:

- something happened before and after another action
  - ​The children were doing their homework when I got home.
- something happened before and after a specific time
  - ​It was eight o'clock. I was writing a letter.
- something happened again and again
  - ​I was practising every day, three times a day.
- using verbs which show change or growth
  - ​The children were growing up quickly.
- talking about something that was happening for a while at a certain point in time in the past

The past continuous must be made by following two steps.

Step 1: Use the verb "to be" in in its past form. This indicates that the tense occurs in the past.

- I was

- You were

- He/she/it was

- We were

- They were

Step 2: Combine the past tense of "to be" (was/were) + the infinitive (hele werkwoord) + ing

- You can read the theory again on p. 153-154
- Tip: Watch the video. The narrator explains the past continuous by giving examples, discussing exceptions and showing images.

Examples of the past continuous:

The police was investigating the murder case yesterday.

Ellen and Kim were making lunch for the whole family.

Janet was listening to a rap song.

We were playing a game of chess.