Past Continuous Tense

Definition:

 The past continuous describes an action that was in progress at a specific time in the past. It is often used for an action that was interrupted by another event or for two simultaneous actions in the past.

Sentence structures

1. Affirmative sentences

Structure: Subject + was/were + verb+ing

Example sentences:

•  She was reading a book at 9 o’clock.

•  They were playing football when it started to rain.• While I was cooking dinner, he was setting the table.

2. Negative sentence

Structure: Subject + was/were + not + verb + ing

Example sentences:

•  They were not watching TV when I arrived.

•  I wasn’t listening

•  He wasn’t feeling well during the party.

3. Interrogative sentence

Structure: Was/Were + subject + verb+ing?

Example sentences:

•  Were you sleeping when I called last night?

•  What were they discussing before the meeting?

•  Was the sun shining when you left for work?

4. Negative Interrogative sentence

Structure: Wasn’t/Weren’t + subject + verb

Example sentences:+ing?

•  Wasn’t she working on the project yesterday?

•  Weren’t you waiting for the bus?

•  Wasn’t it raining just a few minutes ago?

The Past Indefinite Tense