How to form the Past Simple: table
The form is the same for all persons: I worked, she worked, they worked. Negatives and questions use did, and the verb goes back to the base form: did + go (not went).
| Form | Regular verb | Irregular verb |
|---|---|---|
| Positive | She worked late. | She went home. |
| Negative | She didn’t work late. | She didn’t go home. |
| Question | Did she work late? | Did she go home? |
| Short answer | Yes, she did. / No, she didn’t. | Yes, she did. / No, she didn’t. |
| Wh- question | When did she finish? | Where did she go? |
| Form | I / he / she / it | you / we / they |
|---|---|---|
| Positive | I was tired. | They were tired. |
| Negative | I wasn’t tired. | They weren’t tired. |
| Question | Was she tired? | Were you tired? |
Was / were don’t take did: Were you at home? (not Did you be…). Irregular past forms are in the irregular verbs table.
The -ed ending: spelling and pronunciation
| Rule | Examples |
|---|---|
| most verbs: + -ed | work → worked, play → played |
| ends in -e: + -d | live → lived, like → liked |
| consonant + y: -ied | study → studied, try → tried |
| short stressed vowel + consonant: double it | stop → stopped, plan → planned |
Pronunciation: /t/ after voiceless sounds (worked, stopped), /d/ after voiced sounds and vowels (played, lived), /ɪd/ after t and d (wanted, needed).
When to use the Past Simple
A finished action at a specific time
I met him two years ago.
Shakespeare was born in 1564.
A sequence of actions in a story
She opened the door, turned on the light and screamed.
Past habits and states
What happened regularly or was true in the past. Used to has a similar meaning.
When I was a child, I walked to school every day.
We lived in Kharkiv for ten years.
we don’t live there now
A short action interrupting a longer one
The longer action is Past Continuous, the short one Past Simple.
I was having a shower when the phone rang.
Past Simple signal words
- yesterday
- last night
- last week
- last year
- two days ago
- in 2020
- in May
- when I was a child
- then
- When…?
- What time…?
If no time is given and the result now matters, use the Present Perfect: I’ve lost my keys (I don’t have them now) — I lost my keys yesterday.
Common mistakes
What learners of English often say. On the left — the mistake, on the right — the correct version.
Wrong:
Did you went to the party?Right: Did you go to the party?
After did use the base form.
Wrong:
I didn’t saw him.Right: I didn’t see him.
Did already shows the past: use V1.
Wrong:
I have seen him yesterday.Right: I saw him yesterday.
Yesterday needs the Past Simple.
Wrong:
She goed home.Right: She went home.
Go is irregular: go – went – gone.
Wrong:
Did you be at home?Right: Were you at home?
To be in the past: was / were, no did.
Check yourself
Quiz: Past tenses
24 questions with an explanation after every answer. Free, no sign-up.
I worked · I was working · I had worked · I had been working