Past Simple
The Past Simple is an essential English grammar topic for A2-B1 learners. This guide explains how to form and use the Past Simple, with clear examples, common mistakes, and Spanish support where helpful. After studying the explanation, you can practise with worksheets and interactive exercises.
Explanation
The Past Simple tense describes completed actions in the past. Structure: • Affirmative: Subject + past verb (regular: -ed, irregular: varied) • Negative: Subject + did + not + base verb • Question: Did + subject + base verb? Usage: 1. Completed actions: I visited Paris last year. 2. Series of past actions: She woke up, had breakfast, and left for work. 3. Past habits: When I was young, I played football every weekend. 4. Past states: He was very happy yesterday.
Examples
I worked late yesterday.
Regular verb with -ed
She went to the cinema.
Irregular verb (go → went)
Did you see the movie?
Question form
They didn't come to the party.
Negative form
Tips & Common Mistakes
- 1Learn irregular verbs by heart: go-went, see-saw, eat-ate
- 2For regular verbs, add -ed (work-worked) or -d (live-lived)
- 3Use 'did' for all subjects in questions and negatives
Practise this grammar
Free Worksheet
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Interactive Exercise
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Available exercises for this topic:
Past Simple 3 — Fill in the Blank (B1/B2)
10 questions
Past Simple 1 — Fill in the Blank (A2/B1)
10 questions