In this lesson I 'm going to show you how to form a past continuous

and when to use a past continuous.

But before we get started, it's good to know how to conjugate

the verb " to be " in it's past tense.

For the singular forms : I was, you were, he was, she was, it was.

For the plural forms : we were, you were, they were.

It's also good to know that when I say a vowel, I mean an a, an e, an i, an o or a u,

the consonants are all the other letters in the alphabet.

Now let's get started.

Take a look at these sentences :

I was talking on the phone.

And we were cooking dinner.

Both these sentences are in the past continuous tense.

How to form the past continuous?

We use the past tense of the verb " to be ", so either " was " or " were ",

the base form of the verb and " ing ".

I was working late.

You were talking too fast.

He was watching television.

She was walking to school.

It was raining.

For the plural forms we do the same.

We were singing a song.

You were doing your homework.

They were looking for a hotel.

Now we need to pay extra attention to verbs that end in an " e ",

such as " take ", " make " and " close ".

These verbs drop their " e ".

For example : I was taking the bus to school.

He was making dinner.

And they were closing the window.

Please note that these verbs no longer have their " e ".

We also need to pay attention to verbs that have one syllable, end in a consonant

and are preceded by a vowel, because they double this final consonant.

These verbs are verbs such as " sit ", " get " and " run ".

Take a look at the examples :

I was sitting outside.

You were running fast.

It was getting late.

We were letting ourselves go.

They were swimming in the river.

Let's have a look at the past continuous in questions.

Again, we used the past simple form of the verb " to be ", " was " or " were ",

the base form of the verb and " ing ".

Was I getting close?

Were you running late?

Was he taking a bus?

Was she playing tennis?

Was it snowing?

Now, for the plural forms we do the same.

Were we going in the right direction?

Were you arriving by ferry?

Were they eating their lunch?

Now let's have a look at the past continuous in negations.

Again, we use the past simple form of the verb " to be ", so either " was " or " were ",

but we add " not " to it contracting it into " wasn't " or " weren't ",

the base form of the verb and " ing ".

For example : I was n't waiting for you.

You were n't looking for me.

He was n't sleeping late.

She was n't talking on the phone.

And it was n't freezing.

For the plural forms : We were n't putting up a tent.

You were n't speaking at the same time.

And they were n't cutting paper.

Now let's have a look at when to use a past continuous.

First we use the past continuous for a temporary activity in the past.

It started in the past and it was finished in the past.

I was watching television at that moment.

It was raining last night.

They were swimming in the river yesterday.

We want to emphasize that it was lasting for some time.

We also use the past continuous for a temporary activity in the past

interrupted by a short action.

This short action is usually expressed by the past simple.

I was watching television when he called.

It was raining when the car broke down.

They were swimming, when they saw a crocodile.

We also use a past continuous for something

that was planned before a certain time in the future.

For example : I was flying to Dubai, but his meeting was cancelled.

Were n't you meeting her at the airport yesterday?

They were going to that concert, but her car broke down.