Past Continuous Tense
- The past continuous tense is used to talk about actions that were happening at a specific moment in the past.
- The structure for the past continuous tense is: Subject + was/were + verb-ing (gerund) + (optional object).
- When using "when" to join clauses, the "when" clause uses the past simple, and the main clause uses the past continuous.
Past continuous tense helps us talk about actions that were happening at a specific moment in the past. We will also learn how to use "when" to join two clauses in a sentence.
What is the Past Continuous Tense?
The past continuous tense describes actions that were ongoing at a certain point in the past. It is often used with a specific time reference or to show that an action was interrupted by another action.
Grammar Rule: Subject + "was" or "were" + verb-ing (gerund) + (optional object).
Examples:
-
I was reading a book at 8 PM.
Subject ("I") + was + verb-ing ("reading") + object ("a book").
-
They were playing football yesterday afternoon.
Subject ("They") + were + verb-ing ("playing") + object ("football").
Using "When" Clauses
We use "when" to join two clauses in a sentence. The "when" clause uses the past simple tense, and the main clause uses the past continuous tense. This shows that an action was happening (past continuous) when another action occurred (past simple).
Grammar Rule: "When" + subject + past simple verb, subject + "was" or "were" + verb-ing (gerund) + (optional object).
Or: Subject + "was" or "were" + verb-ing (gerund) + (optional object), "when" + subject + past simple verb.
Example: "I was eating dinner when you came home." "I was eating dinner" is the main clause in past continuous tense. "when you came home" is the subordinate clause in simple past tense.
Examples:
-
When she called, I was cooking dinner.
"When she called" is the subordinate clause. It is in simple past.
-
The students were talking when the teacher entered the classroom
"when the teacher entered the classroom" is the subordinate clause. It is in simple past.
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