Past Continuous
The Past Continuous describes actions in progress at a specific past time. It is often used with the Past Simple to show interrupted actions. Formed with 'was/were' + verb-ing.
Past Continuous
The past continuous is built on the past simple of 'be' (subject + was / were) followed by the verb with an -ing ending.
This is the affirmative form:
| Affirmative |
|---|
| I was sleeping |
| you were working |
| he was coming |
| she was reading 'War and Peace' |
| it was raining |
| we were shopping |
| they were watching a film |
The negative simply takes 'not' after the auxiliary:
| Negative | Contracted Negative |
|---|---|
| I was not sleeping | I was wasn't sleeping |
| you were not working | you were weren't working |
| he was not coming | he was wasn't coming |
| she was not reading 'War and Peace' | she was wasn't reading 'War and Peace' |
| it was not raining | it was wasn't raining |
| we were not shopping | we were weren't shopping |
| they were not watching a film | they were weren't watching a film |
As in the past simple with 'be', a 'yes / no' question places 'was' or 'were' in front of the subject:
| Yes/No Questions |
|---|
| Was I listening? |
| Were you working? |
| Was she working? |
| Was he living in Paris at the time? |
| Was it snowing when you arrived? |
| Were we eating? |
| Were they studying? |
In a 'wh' question, the question word comes at the beginning:
| Wh Questions | |
|---|---|
| Why was I working? | |
| Where were you living? | |
| How was she travelling? | |
| Where was he going? | |
| Why was it snowing in the summer? | |
| What were we eating? | |
| Why were they studying? |
Uses of the past continuous
1. An action in the past that overlaps another action or a point in time. The action in the past continuous begins before the shorter action or the stated time, and frequently continues after it.
- I was walking to the station when I met Daniel. (I started walking before I met Daniel, and I may well have continued afterwards.)
- The phone rang while I was having a shower.
- At three o'clock, I was working. (I started before three o'clock and finished after three o'clock.)
2. The past continuous likewise supplies the background of a narrative, while the past simple carries the actions. This is a particular application of the first use above.
- The birds were singing, the sun was shining and in the cafés people were laughing and chatting. Vera sat down and took out her phone.
3. Temporary past habits, or past habits that occurred more often than expected. 'Always', 'constantly' and 'forever' are common in this pattern. The use parallels that of the present continuous, except that the habit both began and ended in the past and no longer holds.
- He was always leaving the tap running.
- She was constantly missing the train.
- Elena was always smiling.
4. To stress that something went on for a considerable period. The tense is optional here, and it normally appears with time expressions such as 'all day', 'all evening' or 'for hours'.
- I was working in the garden all day.
- He was reading all evening.
5. For arrangements seen from a point in the past. The plan had already been made at that earlier moment, and the event was regarded as settled.
- I was meeting my father the following day.
- They were flying to Berlin that evening.
Stative verbs cannot be used in this tense, or in any other continuous tense.