Past Simple — Forms, Examples & Practice

Understanding tenses is crucial for mastering any language, as they form the backbone of how we express time in communication. One of the fundamental tenses in English is the past simple, a key component of our language rules. The past simple tense is used to describe actions or events that occurred at a specific time in the past. In this article, we will explore the rules and usage of this tense, shedding light on how to form and apply it correctly in various contexts.

Definition: Past simple

The past simple (also: simple past) tense is a verb tense used to indicate that an action or situation occurred in the past and is now finished. This tense does not indicate whether the action was completed recently or a long time ago, just that it is not ongoing. With the active voice of past simple, there are no auxiliary verbs or participles needed, unlike other tenses such as the present perfect tense, making its usage straightforward. You simply use the past form by adding “-ed” to regular verbs, while irregular verbs have unique conjugations that must be memorized. Simple past is used to describe completed actions in the past, to recount events in a narrative, or to express actions that happened at a specific time in the past, even if the time is not mentioned.

Formula of past simple active voice

The past simple tense is a foundational aspect of English grammar. This tense is characterized by its straightforward structure, relying solely on the base form (infinitive) of verbs. Unlike with present simple, you don’t need to take pronouns or subject-verb agreement into account, as all verbs in past tense maintain the same form. One exception to this rule, however, is the past form of “to be,” which changes to “was/were.” In this section, we will explore the rules and patterns involved in creating the past tense for both regular and irregular verbs by providing clear examples and explanations.

Regular verbs

Regular verbs adhere to a predictable conjugation pattern. Typically, they form their past tense by adding “-ed” to the infinitive. However, there are some regular verbs with specific spelling changes:

Irregular verbs

The English language contains approximately 200 irregular verbs that do not conform to standard conjugation patterns. These verbs have distinctive forms for different tenses, often exhibiting unpredictable changes in spelling or pronunciation between the infinitive, past tense, and past participle. The past participle is one of the two past forms and is used in forming perfect and passive tenses. Irregular verbs can be divided into four different categories:

To enhance your understanding, we have created a PDF document that encompasses both regular and irregular verbs, which you may obtain by downloading it from the link provided below.

Practice worksheet

Now that you know how to form the past simple tense, it is time to practice its conjugations. Below, you can find ten example sentences that include both regular and irregular verbs in various contexts in the past. Let’s see if you can get them all correct.

Active question form of past simple

To form questions in the past simple tense, we use the auxiliary verb “did,” which is the past form of “do,” followed by the subject, the base form of the main verb, and of course a question mark.

Questions with question words

While most questions in the past simple tense use “did,” there are exceptions, particularly when “who,” “what,” or “which” are subjects of the sentence. In this case, “did” can be omitted, meaning the verb needs to be in its past form again.

Negative question form of past simple

Negative questions in the past simple tense can be formed in two ways:

1. Using the contraction “didn’t.”
2. Inverting the subject and auxiliary verb “did,” and adding “not”.

The first question form of past simple with the apostrophe is more commonly used in spoken English and in informal writing. It often implies slight surprise or seeks confirmation of something the speaker expects to be true or is unsure about.

The second question form of past simple tends to be more formal and is more commonly found in written English. It places a clearer emphasis on the negative aspect, often used to express disbelief or surprise.

Negative questions with question words

When forming negative questions with question words (who, what, where, etc.) in the past simple tense, the structure includes “did not” or “didn’t.”

Below, we have created an image that illustrates the structures of the past simple active voice.

Formula of past simple passive voice

As we’ve gone through the structure of simple past’s active voice in the previous paragraphs, it’s now time to talk about the structure of the passive voice. It is used when the focus is on the action rather than the subject performing the action. It is formed by using the auxiliary verb “was/were” and the past participle of the main verb. When people are involved, we use the agent “by” to show the doer of the action. The object in an active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence.

Below, we have created an image to summarize the form of the past simple passive voice.

Indicators for past simple

There are numerous tenses in the English language, but for each one, there are time expressions that make it easier to figure out which past tense to use. Here are some common indicators for the past simple tense, along with examples.

Short answers in past simple

Short answers in the past simple tense are concise responses that confirm or deny the occurrence of an action. They can be used in both active voice with “did” or “didn’t” and in passive voice with the auxiliary verb “was/were” or “wasn’t/weren’t.” Here’s how to form short answers in past simple, along with examples.

Practice exercise

To conclude this article, you can test your knowledge of past simple with this practice exercise. The answers for the correct past simple conjugations can be found in the second tab. Learning English tenses can be difficult, specifically irregular verbs, so don’t get frustrated when you can’t get a perfect result. As they say in the English proverb, “Rome wasn’t built in a day,” meaning that achieving great things takes time and effort.