Welcome to your Future lesson! In this topic we talk about:
• Conjugating “be” in the Past Simple
• Constructing the Past Simple with regular verbs
• Constructing the Past Simple with irregular verbs
• Short answers
Take the quizzes when you’re ready! If you’re having problems, use the comment box to contact our English Teachers.
Conjugating “be” in the Past Simple
| affirmative | interrogative | negative | |
| full form | contracted form | ||
| I was | was I? | I was not | I wasn’t |
| you were | were you? | you were not | you weren’t |
| he/she/it was |
was he/she/it? |
he/she/it was not |
he/she/it wasn’t |
| you/we/they were |
were you/we/they? |
you/we/they were not |
you/we/they weren’t |
“You were at school yesterday, weren’t you?”
“Were you tired last week?”
Constructing the Past Simple with regular verbs
- Affirmative form with regular verbs:
subject + infinitive verb + ed:
“I played football yesterday.”
If the infinitive verb ends with “e”, then just add “+d”.
- Negative form with regular verbs:
subject + didn’t + infinitive verb:
“She didn’t work yesterday.”
- Interogative form with regular verbs:
did + subject + infinitive verb:
“Did she text last night?”
Constructing the Past Simple with irregular verbs
Some verbs are irregular in the Past Simple. You’ll have to learn all of these forms by heart, and they are the same no matter the subject.
| Infinitive | buy | drink | eat | give | go | have | make | speak | take |
| Past Simple | bought | drank | ate | gave | went | had | made | spoke | took |
The negative and interrogative form of irregular verbs are constructed the same way as that of regular verbs.
Short answers
Short answers with “be” are formed:
“Yes + subject + be (conjugated)” or “No + subject + be (conjugated) + not”:
“Were you tired yesterday?”
“Yes, I was.” / “No, I wasn’t.”
Short answers with other verbs are formed:
“Yes + subject + did” or “No + subject + did + not”:
“Did you do your homework?”
“Yes, I did.” / “No, I didn’t.”
