Past tense in English is a type of tense that is used to talk about an action that happened or a state of being that existed or was true in the past [a time that passed by.] Therefore, we normally use the past tense to express an action or a state of being that took place or existed in the past time.
We use second forms or v2 of verbs with the past tense. For example, the past tense of lead is led; the past tense of teach is taught; the past tense of speak is spoke; the past tense of fly is flew; the past tense of seek is sought; the past tense of see is saw; the past tense of write is wrote; the past tense of go is went; the past tense of swim is swam; the past tense of lay is laid.
Continue to read to learn past tense definition, meaning, types, rules, formulas, uses and example sentences with clear explanations.
This article covers:
- Past Tense - Definition and Meaning
- Examples of Past Tense in Sentences
- Types of Past Tense
- Past Tense Formulas
- Uses of Past Tense
- FAQs - Past Tense
Past Tense - Definition and Meaning
The Merriam-Webster defines past tense as "a verb tense expressing action or state in progress or continuance or habitually done or customarily occurring at a past time."
The Cambridge Dictionary defines past tense as "used to describe verb forms in many languages used for actions that have now finished."
The Oxford Learner's Dictionaries defines past tense as "the form of a verb used to describe actions in the past."
The Longman Dictionary defines past tense as "a form of a verb that shows that something happened or existed before the present time."
After analyzing the past tense definitions given above by different dictionaries, we find that three things are at the heart of the past tense.
1. The past tense is a form of a verb.
2. The past tense describes an action or state of being that happened or existed before the present time.
3. The past tense talks about the action or state of being that happened, was happening, had happened or had been happening at a past time.
Also read: present tense
Examples of Past Tense in Sentences
Here are a few example sentences of simple past, past continuous, past perfect or past perfect continuous tenses:
1. simple past: I worked.
2. Past continuous: I was working.
3. Past perfect: I had worked.
4. Past perfect continuous: I had been working.
Types of Past Tense - Definition and Examples
There are four types of past tense in English grammar like those of present tense; that is, all the three tenses such as present, past and future tenses have four types or aspects. The four types or aspects of past along with definitions and examples are given below:
1. Simple Past Tense
What is simple past tense? The simple past tense talks about an action that started and finished in the past.
Examples of simple past tense
a. I worked for a bank.
b. They went to the market yesterday.
c. John came yesterday.
2. Past Continuous Tense
What is past continuous tense? The past continuous tense, also known as past progressive tense, talks about an action that started in a particular time in the past and was continuously happening till a particular time in the past.
Examples of past continuous tense
a. I was sleeping.
b. John was reading a book.
c. They were talking to one another.
3. Past Perfect Tense
What is past perfect tense? The past perfect talks about an action that started in the past and finished before another past action.
Examples of past perfect tense
a. The patient had died before the doctor arrived.
b. The thief had escaped before the police came.
c. I had learned English by the time I was 10.
4. Past perfect continuous tense
What is past perfect continuous tense? The past perfect continuous tense talks about an action that started in the past, continued till a specific time in the past and finished in the past.
Examples of past perfect continuous tense
a. I had been working that night and I was exhausted.
b. I had been reading a book yesterday for two hours, then I went to the market.
Past Tense Formulas and Structures
1. Simple past tense structure: S + V2
Examples:
a. They went.
b. I ate.
c. She worked.
2. Past continuous tense structure: S + Was/Were + V-ing
Examples:
a. I was working.
b. John and Tom were sleeping.
c. She was reading.
3. Past perfect tense structure: S + Had + V3
Examples:
a. He had gone.
b. She had eaten.
c. I had worked.
4. Past perfect continuous tense structure: S + Had been + V-ing + Timing
Examples:
a. I had been working since morning.
b. She had been reading for two hours.
c. They had been sleeping for three hours.
FAQs - Past Tense
What does past tense mean?
Past tense is one of the three main types of English tenses. The past tense is used to talk about the actions that took place at a past time as in "She spoke to me."
What is the definition of past tense
The past tense is defined as "a form of a verb that describes an action or state of being that happened in the past as in "John came yesterday."
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