Grammar- Tenses -Past Continuous Tense


Past Continuous Tense

is used  to talk about events actions and happenings which were in progress  during a particular time time in the past

 

Today Kurulu is joining again with us to continue our discussion on

Past Continuous Tense

Let’s begin

         

As you all know Kurulu goes to the beach every weekend. Yesterday was Sunday and she went to the beach. I also went to the beach yesterday. When I went there Kurulu and her family members were there at the beach. The sun was shining brightly in the sky. They all were enjoying a sunny day at the beach. Vihanga, her elder brother was flying a kite. was he enjoying it? He was enjoying it very much. Her little brother Pavan was riding a pony. Her father was walking beside him. Pavan was enjoying the ride happily. Her friends Smanali and Sepalika were building sand castles. Kokila and Pavan were playing with a ball. Kokila was throwing the ball and Pavan was catching. Some people were bathing in the sea. What was Kurulu doing then?  Was she collecting sea shells? She was not collecting shells then. Kurulu was sitting and watching the rolling waves in the sea. Who was collecting sea shells? Sandaras was collecting sea shells.  Some children were collecting seashells on the beach too. They were not idling a single moment. Their mother was sitting on a rock. She was watching them at play. An ice-cream seller was standing under a tree. He was selling ice cream. A Kadala vendor was also selling Kadala. Some Children were running to buy ice-cream and kadala.  I stayed there for some time and when the sun was setting I got ready to leave the beach. Then the birds were flying to their nests. Kurulu and others were all getting ready to go home. It was an enjoyable day.

 When you read the paragraph you may have noticed that when I went there Kurulu and others were doing some actions.

 Those actions were happening or continuing at that time or at t time in the past.

The actions were continuing at that time but now they are all over.

Therefore we use

Past Continuous Tense

 to talk about

Past actions

which were continuing

at a particular time in the past

Read the sentences taken from the paragraph above paying attention to how the verb is used in the sentences.

 They say what was happening at the beach then.

The sun was shining brightly in the sky.

 They all were enjoying a sunny day at the beach.

 Vihanga, her elder brother was flying a kite.

Was he enjoying it?

He was enjoying it very much.

 Her little brother Pavan was riding a pony.

Her father was walking beside him.

Pavan was enjoying the ride happily.

 Her friends Smanali and Sepalika were building sand castles.

Kokila and Pavan were playing with a ball.

Kokila was throwing the ball and Pavan was catching.

Some people were bathing in the sea.

 What was Kurulu doing now?

Was she collecting sea shells?

She was not collecting shells now.

Kurulu was sitting and watching the rolling waves in the sea.

Who was collecting sea shells today?

Sandaras was collecting sea shells.

 Some children were collecting seashells on the beach too.

They were not idling a single moment.

Their mother was sitting on a rock.

She was watching them at play.

They were not idling a single moment.

 An ice-cream seller was standing under a tree.

 He was selling ice cream.

 He was selling different kinds of ice-cream.

 A Kadala vendor was also selling Kadala.

 Children were running to buy ice-cream and kadala.

The sun was setting. 

They were getting ready to go home.

Then the birds were flying to their nests

 

All these sentences talk about

 

Actions which were happening

 

The sun was shining brightly in the sky.

 They all were enjoying a sunny day at the beach.

 

 

Actions which were not happening

 

They were not idling a single moment.

She was not collecting shells now.

 

 We can also ask

 

Questions about actions which were  happening

 

What was Kurulu doing then at the beach?

Was she collecting sea shells?

Who was collecting sea shells that day?

 

Do you notice any difference in the use of the verb?

Yes, there is a difference.

 

There are two words in the verb

 

The main verb is used with a helping verb and ing is added at the end 

Kokila and Pavan were playing with a ball.


The helping verbs, was and were shows that it was happening in the past time and the suffix ing shows that the action was continuing or not  completed at that time.

Let’s look at how Past Continuous Tense sentences are formed.

 

When talking about actions happening we use

 

Subject + helping verb + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial

 

 

 If the subject is singular, or if we talk about one person, we use

 

Subject Singular + was   + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial

                        Pavan            was  enjoying      the ride   happily.      

         

More examples



 

Vihanga was flying kites at the beach.

Her brother was playing with a ball.



Ice cream seller was selling ice cream.

 


If the subject is plural, or if we talk about more than one person we use

 

Subject Plural + were   + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial

                            They    were      enjoying      a sunny say at the beach. 

 


More examples

             

The girls were collecting sea shells.


Samanali and sepalika were building sand castles.


The children were playing with a ball.

 

 

If the subject is I, or if we talk about one’s own self

 

Subject + was   + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial

                        I            was   watching      the waves   happily.

              

 Do the following activities

Activity 1

Fill the blanks with the past continuous form of the verb. Use the verb stems in the brackets.

  1.  The birds….....   ………………….  in the sky.(fly)
  2. Some tourists …… …………………   along the beach. (run)
  3.  Kurulu’s father  ……   ……………..beside the pony.(walk)
  4. The children …… ………………… ice-cream.(eat)
  5. The boats ….. …………….. on the sea.(sail)

 

Remember!

 

 When we use a pronoun as the subject,

 If the subject is I we use the helping verb was

If the subject is He, She and It we use the helping verb was

If the subject is You, We and They we use the helping verb were

 

 

The spelling rules when adding ing to the verb

 

If the verb ends with the letter e drop it and add ing

No e

Examples

come -  coming

give -   giving

ride – riding

hide – hiding

 

If the verb ends with the letter, g ,m , n , or t (with a short vowel sound before it )  double that letter and add  ing

Double g  , m  , n & t

Examples

dig – digging

swim – swimming

run – running

cut – cutting

 

 But if there is a long vowel sound before it

 just add ing

Examples

roam – roaming

open – opening

eat – eating

              

 Do the following activities

 

Activity 2

Fill the blanks with the past continuous form of the verb. Use the verb stems in the brackets.

  1.    Kurulu’s younger brother ….. …………………… a pony .(ride)
  2.    Kurulu   …… ………. in a village near the beach these days. (live)
  3.     Pavans’  father ……………. ……………. With him (come)
  4.      The ice cream seller ….. ………………. ice-cream to the children(give)
  5.       The boys …….. ……… kites.(make)
  6.     I ………… ……………….. my car towards the beach.(drive

            

    Activity 3

Fill the blanks with the past continuous form of the verb. Use the verb stems in the brackets.

  1.   Kurulu’s  mother  ….. …………………… on a rock. .(sit)
  2.     Some tourists   …… ………. in the sea now. (swim)
  3.    Kurulu’s friends … ……..…...ready to build sand castles (get)
  4.  Sandaras ….. ………………. Hole on the sand.(dig)
  5. The boys …….. ……… to by  ice-cream.(run)
  6.  I ………… ……………….. shutters of  my car .(shut)

 

When talking about actions that are not happening (Negative Form) we use

 

Subject + helping verb +not + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial


 


If the subject is singular, or if we talk about one person, we use


 

Subject Singular + was + not + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial

                          kurulu    was   not collecting  sea shell at the beach.      

         

More examples



 

Vihanga was not riding a pony at the beach.

Her brother was not having a bath.

Her mother was not eating an ice cream.


If the subject is plural, or if we talk about more than one person, we use

 


Subject plural + were + not + verb + ing + Object / Adverbial

  Kurulu’s brothers  were   not    collecting  sea shell   at the beach.      

         


More examples

 

The girls were not riding ponies at the beach.

Her brothers were not having a bath.

Her mother and father were not eating an ice cream.

              

 Do the following activities

 

Activity 4

Change the following sentences in to negative form.

  1. The birds were flying in the sky.
  2. Kurulu’s mother was making sand castles.
  3. Kurulu was collecting sea shells.
  4. The ice-cream seller was selling cool drinks at the beach.
  5. Vihanga was buying kites.
  6. You were   building the sand castles well.
  7. I was coming to the beach by my car.

 

When asking about actions happening (interrogative form) we use

Was & Were


We form ‘yes, no’ questions in the present simple by adding the auxiliary

Was  & Were before the subject of the verb.

 

What are ‘yes, no’ questions?

They are the questions which get either yes or no as the answer.

 

If the subject is singular, or if we ask about one person, we use


 

Was   +   Subject Singular   +   Verb + ing   +   Object / Adverbial

       Was               she                          collecting          sea shells     now?

No, she was not collecting shells now.

 

More examples

Was Pavan enjoying the ride?

Yes, he was enjoying the ride.

 

Was mother eating an ice-cream?

No, she was not eating an ice-cream.

 

Was Vihanga flying a kite?

Yes, he  was flying a kite.

 



 

If the subject is plural, or if we ask about one person, we use


 

Were      +      Subject plural   + Verb + ing    +  Object / Adverbial

         Were                   they                            flying               kites?

Yes, they were.

More examples

 

Were the children buying ice-cream?

Yes, they were.

Were they building sand castles?

Yes, they were.


Were the children bathing in the sea?

No, they were not.

 

Do the following activities

Activity 5

Make questions to get the following as the answers.

  1. Yes, the birds were flying in the sky.
  2. No, kurulu’s mother was not making sand castles.
  3. Yes, Kurulu was collecting sea shells.
  4. No, the ice-cream seller was not selling cool drinks.
  5. Yes, Vihanga was flying a kite.
  6. Yes, you were   building the sand castles well.
  7. No, I was not coming to the beach.
  8. No, the children were not sun bathing.

 

We form ‘information’ questions in the present simple by adding a question word before the auxiliary was or were before the subject of the verb.


What are ‘information’ questions?


They are the questions which get certain information as the answer.


If the subject singular we use was after the question word and if the subject is plural we use were. We also use was if the subject is I

 

If the subject is singular, or if we ask about one person, we use

 

           Question word + was +Subject + Verb+ ing +    Adverbial

               What                  was         she          collecting             then?

She was collecting seashells then.

 

More examples

 

Where was mother sitting at the beach?

She was sitting on a rock.


What was pavan riding?

Pavan was riding a pony.


What were the children building?

They were building sand castles.

 

 

If the subject is plural, or if we ask about more than one person, we use

 

           Question word + were +Subject +   Verb+ ing +    Adverbial

                          What  were  the children buying at the beach?                     

                   They were buying ice cream at the beach.

 

More examples

 

Where were the children bathing ?

The children were bathing in the sea.


What were children buying?

Children were buying ice-cream.

What were the children building?

They were building sand castles.


Do the following activities

Activity 6

Make questions to get the highlighted word or phrase as the answers.

  1. The birds were flying in the sky.
  2. Kurulu’s mother was not making sand castles.
  3. Kurulu was collecting sea shells.
  4. The ice-cream seller was selling ice-cream at the beach.
  5. Vihanga was buying two kites.
  6.  You were   building the sand castles well.
  7. I was not coming to the beach by my car.
  8. They were enjoying a lot because it is a sunny day.

 

If the subject singular we use was after the question word and if the subject is plural we use were

 

Remember!

There are certain verbs that do not usually appear in the continuous form

What are they?

Mental states:

Believe

Know

Understand

Realize

Recognize

Suppose

Wants & likes:

Want

Like

Love

Hate

Need

Prefer

Appearance:

Appear

Seem

Look like

 

Example sentences

We say,

I knew him very well

Not

 I was knowing him very well.

 

Kurulu seemed happy today

Not

Kurulu was seeming happy today

 

 I loved my mother very much.

Not

I was loving my mother very much.

 


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