Past Continuous

Past Continuous

(Past Progressive)
 
1) The past continuous tense is formed by the past tense of the verb "to be" + the present participle (-ing form):

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PRESENT PARTICIPLE (-ING FORM)

Example: to work
Affirmative
 - I was working
 - You were working
 - He was working
 - We were working
 - You were working
 - They were working 

Negative
 - I was not working
 - You were not working
 - He was not working
 - We were not working
 - You were not working
 - They were not working

Interrogative
 - Was I working?
 - Were you working?
 - Was he working?
 - Were we working?
 - Were you working?
 - Were they working?
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   a) Negative contractions: the verb "be" can be contracted with "not": "wasn't" / "weren't" 

Examples:
 - I wasn't talking to you.
 - They weren't paying attention to the speech.
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   b) Negative interrogative: positioning is different if the auxiliary is contracted or not:

Examples:
 - Was he not working?
 - Wasn't he working?'
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When to use


The past continuous is chiefly used for past actions which continued for some time but whose exact limits are not known and are not important.
It indicates uncertainty about times of starting or finishing.

1) (Without a time expression) To indicate gradual development.

Examples:
 - It was getting darker.
 - The wind was rising.
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2) (With a point in time) To express an action which began before that time and probably continued after it.

Example:
 - At eight he was having breakfast (implies that he was in the middle of breakfast at eight)
 --> Compare: "He had breakfast at eight" would imply that he started it at eight.
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3) (With a verb in the simple past instead of a time expression) To convey the idea that the action in the past continuous started before the action in the simple past and probably continued after it.

Example:
 - When I arrived Tom was talking on the phone.
 - When she knocked on my door, I was having a shower.
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4) In descriptions (atmosphere or scene).

Example:
 - A wood fire was burning on the hearth, and a cat was sleeping in front of it. A girl was playing the piano and (was) singing softly to herself. Suddenly...
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5) As a past equivalent of the present continuous:

   a) Direct speech/Indirect speech

Example:
 - He said, "I am living in London."
 --> He said he was living in London.
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   b) To express a definite future arrangement (in the past):

Example:
 - He was busy packing, for he was leaving that night. (The decision to leave had been made some time previously.)
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   c) (With "always") For a frequently repeated action in the past (annoying or unreasonable action).

Examples:
 - He was always ringing me up.
 - He was always working.
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6) As an alternative to the simple past to indicate a more casual, less deliberate action.

Example:
 - I was talking to Tom the other day.
 - From four to six Tom was washing the car.
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Note that continuous tenses are used only for apparently continuous uninterrupted actions. If we divide the action up, or say how many
times it happened, we must use the simple past.
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CLICK HERE to see verbs not normally used in the continuous tenses
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