A1–A2 English grammar

Past Simple Tense: Rules, Examples and Exercises

The past simple describes a finished event in a finished time. Learn affirmative forms, was and were, negatives, past simple questions, and the difference between regular and irregular verbs: then use the tense in a meaningful story.

A1–A232 minutesGuided practiceScored quiz

Created by Denis M., British English teacher.

Try the activities, then check your answers.

Follow one short story through a statement, negative and question. Use the speaking pauses as your core task; the longer story is optional.

When do we use the past simple?

One completed event

The action began and ended before now.

I called Maya at nine.
She answered immediately.

A sequence of events

Use the tense to move a story forward, one completed action after another.

We arrived, ordered dinner and sat outside.

A finished past habit

A repeated action can use the simple past when its period is finished.

At university, Leo walked to class every day.

A past state

Use was/were or another state verb for a condition that was true then.

The room was cold.
I believed the story.

Meaning check: Can you place the event inside a finished time such as yesterday, last week, two hours ago or in 2024? The past simple is likely.

Yesterday’s missing train

1 · 08:00
Sam arrived at the station.

2 · 08:05
The train was cancelled.

3 · 08:15
Sam called a taxi.

Sam makes a phone call outside a railway station, with a small travel case beside him. — Sam called a taxi.The lesson places this call in yesterday’s story. A still picture shows the call, but does not establish when it happened.

Regular -ed has three endings: worked /t/, called /d/, wanted /ɪd/. Add an extra syllable only after /t/ or /d/ sounds.

Listen, then say it

Listen once, then repeat worked, called and wanted. Only wanted has an extra syllable.

Read the audio transcript

Worked. I worked late. Called. She called a taxi. Wanted. We wanted to go home. Worked, called, wanted. Now say one short sentence with each verb.

Build affirmative forms

Most verbs

subject + past form

I/you/he/she/we/they worked late.
All subjects use the same past form.

The verb be

I/he/she/it was · you/we/they were

The office was open.
We were tired.

Function	Ordinary verb	Be
Positive	Sam finished.	Sam was ready.
Negative	Sam did not finish.	Sam was not ready.
Question	Did Sam finish?	Was Sam ready?
Short answer	Yes, he did.	No, he wasn’t.

British and American name: past simple and simple past name the same tense. Learners and coursebooks use both.

The same -ed spelling has three sounds here

workedFinal sound: /t/

One syllable: worked.

calledFinal sound: /d/

One syllable: called.

wantedFinal sound: /ɪd/

Two syllables: want + id.

Use the existing recording to hear the contrast. Wanted gains an extra syllable; worked and called do not.

Past simple regular and irregular verbs

Regular: add -ed

work → worked
clean → cleaned
visit → visited

The spelling is often -ed, but its pronunciation can be /t/, /d/ or /ɪd/.

Final -e: add -d

live → lived
arrive → arrived
change → changed

Do not add another e.

Consonant + y: use -ied

study → studied
carry → carried

But a vowel + y stays: play → played.

Short stressed form: double

stop → stopped
plan → planned

Do not double in open → opened because the final syllable is not stressed.

Irregular verbs must be learned: go → went, see → saw, take → took, buy → bought. Their past form is not the same as their past participle in every case. Use the searchable irregular verbs list to check forms.

Past simple questions and negatives

Questions with did

Did + subject + base verb?

Did you enjoy the concert?
Where did Ava park?

Did carries the past meaning, so the main verb returns to its base form.

Negatives with did not

subject + did not/didn’t + base verb

We didn’t hear the alarm.
He did not bring his passport.

Do not mark the past twice:
Did she went? → Did she go?
They didn’t arrived. → They didn’t arrive.
With be, do not use did: Were they late?

Build the question from left to right

Wheredidyoubuythat jacket?

Where asks for the place. Did carries the past meaning, so the main verb stays buy.

Use time expressions to make a clear story

Time expressions locate events; linking expressions show their order.

Finished-time expressions

yesterday, last night, last year, two minutes ago, in 2019, when I was a child

We moved here three years ago.

Sequence expressions

first, then, after that, later, finally

First, I checked the address. Then, I called a taxi.

Mini-story: Yesterday I missed my bus. First, I ran to the next stop, but the bus left before I arrived. Then I called a taxi. The driver took a faster route, so I reached work on time. Notice how each past-simple verb advances the story.

A formally dressed taxi driver steers through a city street while a woman with exceptionally deep ebony skin rides in the rear seat. — The driver took a faster route, so I reached work on time.The scene illustrates the taxi journey. The sentence supplies the faster route, its result and the finished past time.

For background actions and earlier events, continue with Four Past Tenses: Build a Clear Story.

Separate the facts in Sam’s story

The situationThe train was cancelled.

This describes the train’s situation.

The action not takenHe didn’t take the train.

Use take after didn’t.

The responseHe called a taxi.

Called is a positive past form.

The story also says Sam arrived at eight. It does not specify the time when the cancellation happened.

Guided past simple exercises

Complete the sentence before opening its explanation.

1. We ___ (visit) the museum last Saturday.

visited. The event is finished and visit is regular.

2. Mia ___ (not understand) the instructions.

didn’t understand. Use didn’t + base verb.

3. Where ___ you ___ (buy) that jacket?

did you buy. A question uses did + subject + base verb.

4. The children ___ (be) very quiet.

were. The plural subject children takes were.

5. Correct: “Did Marco took the train?”

Did Marco take the train? Did already marks the past.

Production: Write six sentences about yesterday: three affirmative events, one negative, one question, and one sentence with was or were.