Grammar Focus
Past Simple & Past Continuous
Past Simple (Απλός Αόριστος) shows a finished action. Past Continuous (Παρατατικός / παρελθοντική διάρκεια) shows an action that was happening at a specific moment in the past.
1. Past Simple (Απλός Αόριστος)
📘 Theory (Θεωρία)
We use the Past Simple for actions that started and finished in the past.
- Finished actions: I played football yesterday.
- Past habits or repeated actions: We visited grandma every Sunday.
- A sequence of past events: She woke up, had breakfast and went to school.
🧩 Form (Σχηματισμός)
| Type | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Affirmative (Κατάφαση) | Subject + past verb | I played. / She went. |
| Negative (Άρνηση) | Subject + didn’t + base verb | I didn’t play. / She didn’t go. |
| Question (Ερώτηση) | Did + subject + base verb? | Did you play? / Did she go? |
Important: after did / didn’t, we use the base form: Did he go? not Did he went?
✏️ -ed spelling rules
- play → played
- like → liked
- study → studied
- stop → stopped
📌 Time expressions
yesterday, last night, last week, two days ago, in 2020, when I was younger
✅ Examples (Παραδείγματα)
- I watched a video yesterday. → Είδα ένα βίντεο χθες.
- She didn’t finish her homework. → Δεν τελείωσε την εργασία της.
- Did they visit the museum? → Επισκέφτηκαν το μουσείο;
- We went to the park last Sunday. → Πήγαμε στο πάρκο την προηγούμενη Κυριακή.
📝 Exercises – Past Simple
A. Complete with the Past Simple.
- I __________ (watch) TV yesterday.
- She __________ (go) to school by bus.
- They __________ (play) football last Saturday.
- We __________ (eat) pizza for dinner.
- He __________ (study) English last night.
B. Make the sentences negative.
- I visited London. → __________________________
- She bought a new bag. → __________________________
- They played tennis. → __________________________
C. Make questions.
- you / watch / the film? → __________________________
- he / finish / the exercise? → __________________________
- they / go / to the zoo? → __________________________
2. Past Continuous (Παρατατικός / Παρελθοντική Διάρκεια)
📘 Theory (Θεωρία)
We use the Past Continuous for actions that were in progress at a specific time in the past. (Χρησιμοποιούμε τον Past Continuous για ενέργειες που βρίσκονταν σε εξέλιξη σε μια συγκεκριμένη στιγμή στο παρελθόν.)
- A past moment: I was reading at 7 o’clock.
- Background action: The sun was shining and the birds were singing.
- A longer action interrupted by a shorter action: I was sleeping when the phone rang.
🧩 Form (Σχηματισμός)
| Type | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Affirmative (Κατάφαση) | Subject + was/were + verb-ing | I was playing. / They were studying. |
| Negative (Άρνηση) | Subject + wasn’t/weren’t + verb-ing | He wasn’t sleeping. / We weren’t running. |
| Question (Ερώτηση) | Was/Were + subject + verb-ing? | Was she reading? / Were they dancing? |
✏️ -ing spelling rules
- play → playing
- write → writing
- run → running
- swim → swimming
📌 Time expressions
at 8 o’clock, at that moment, all morning, while, when
✅ Examples (Παραδείγματα)
- I was doing my homework at 6 o’clock. → Έκανα την εργασία μου στις 6.
- They were playing in the garden. → Έπαιζαν στον κήπο.
- She wasn’t listening to music. → Δεν άκουγε μουσική.
- Were you sleeping when I called? → Κοιμόσουν όταν τηλεφώνησα;
📝 Exercises – Past Continuous
A. Complete with was/were + verb-ing.
- I __________ (read) a book at 9 o’clock.
- She __________ (cook) dinner.
- They __________ (play) basketball.
- We __________ (watch) a film.
- He __________ (write) an email.
B. Make the sentences negative.
- I was sleeping. → __________________________
- They were running. → __________________________
- She was listening to music. → __________________________
C. Make questions.
- you / study / at 7 o’clock? → __________________________
- he / play / football? → __________________________
- they / watch / TV? → __________________________
3. Past Simple + Past Continuous Together
When we use the two tenses together, the Past Continuous often shows the longer action and the Past Simple shows the shorter action that interrupted it. (Όταν χρησιμοποιούμε τους δύο χρόνους μαζί, ο Past Continuous δείχνει συνήθως τη μεγαλύτερη ενέργεια που βρισκόταν σε εξέλιξη, ενώ ο Past Simple δείχνει τη συντομότερη ενέργεια που τη διέκοψε.)
when
Pattern: Past Continuous + when + Past Simple
I was sleeping when the phone rang.
She was walking to school when it started to rain.
while
We usually use while before the longer action.
While I was doing my homework, my brother was playing games.
📝 Mixed Practice
A. Choose the correct tense.
- I watched / was watching TV when my mum came home.
- She played / was playing tennis yesterday.
- They were sleeping / slept at 10 o’clock.
- He fell / was falling while he was running.
B. Complete the sentences.
- I was reading when __________________________.
- While we were playing, __________________________.
- She was walking home when __________________________.
✅ Show answers
Past Simple
- watched
- went
- played
- ate
- studied
- I didn’t visit London.
- She didn’t buy a new bag.
- They didn’t play tennis.
- Did you watch the film?
- Did he finish the exercise?
- Did they go to the zoo?
Past Continuous
- was reading
- was cooking
- were playing
- were watching
- was writing
- I wasn’t sleeping.
- They weren’t running.
- She wasn’t listening to music.
- Were you studying at 7 o’clock?
- Was he playing football?
- Were they watching TV?
Mixed Practice
- was watching
- played
- were sleeping
- fell
Sample answers: I was reading when my mum called me. While we were playing, it started to rain. She was walking home when she saw a dog.
Mozaweb - Past Simple and Past Continuous
