Talking about the past.

The past simple:

—  Affirmative:

S + VPp + C.

EX.:  I played tennis when I was twenty.

—  Negative:

S + DID + NOT + VPp + C.

EX.:  He didn’t go to your party because she was sick.

—  Interrogative:

DID + S + VPp + C?

EX.:  What language did she speak?

 

The past simple is used:

—  To talk about an action that took place in the past:

◦       He got up, paid the bill and left.

◦       I didn’t read the letter, I just gave it to Lee.

◦       What did you say?

NOTE: often a specific time in the past is mentioned:

◦       Did you speak to Amy yesterday?

◦       To talk about a state that continued for some time, but that is now finished:

◦       I went to school in Scotland.

◦       Did she really work there for ten years?

—  To talk about actions that happened regularly in the past:

◦       I often played tennis with her. She always won.

◦       They never went to the cinema when they lived in the country.

 

 

The present perfect:

—  Affirmative:

S + HAVE/HAS + VPpp + C.

EX.:  I’ve played tennis for ten years.

—  Negative:

S + HAVE/HAS + NOT + VPpp + C.

EX.: She hasn’t been in London.

—  Interrogative:

HAVE/HAS + S + VPpp + C?

EX.:  Have you ever seen the rain?

 

The present perfect is used:

—  To talk about something that happened during a period of time that is not yet finished:

◦       The train has been late three times this week.

◦       He still hasn’t visited her.

—  When the time in the past is not mentioned, or is not important:

◦       He’s written a book.

◦       We’ve bought a new computer.

—  When the action finished in the past, but the effect is still felt in the present:

◦       He’s lost his calculator (and he still hasn’t found it.)

—  With for and since to show duration of an action or state up until the present:

◦       I have worked here since 1998.

◦       She hasn’t bought any new clothes for years.

—  In British English, with just, ever, already and yet:

◦       I’ve just arrived.

◦       Have you ever been here before?

◦       He’s already packed his suitcases.

◦       Haven’t you finished yet?

NOTE: in informal American English the past simple can be used with just, already and yet:

◦       He already packed his suitcases.

◦       Didn’t you finished yet?

 

 

The present perfect progressive:

—  Affirmative:

S + HAVE/HAS + BEEN + VP + -ING + C.

EX.:  I’ve been working a lot.

—  Negative:

S + HAVE/HAS + NOT + BEEN + VP + -ING + C.

EX.:  She hasn’t been doing her exercises.

—  Interrogative:

HAVE/HAS + S + BEEN + VP + -ING + C?

EX.:  Have you been working?

 

The present perfect progressive is used:

—  With for and since to talk about an activity that started in the past and is still happening:

◦       I’ve been working since eight o’clock.

◦       He’s been learning English for several years.

—  To talk about an activity that has finished, but whose results are visible now:

◦       My hands are dirty because I’ve been gardening.

 

 

The past progressive:

—  Affirmative:

S + VTO BEp +  VP + -ING + C.

EX.:  You were studying last weekend.

—  Negative:

S + VTO BEp + NOT + VP + -ING + C.

EX.: They weren’t eating rice.

—  Interrogative:

VTO BEp + S + VP + -ING + C?

EX.:  Where were you going last night?

 

The past progressive is used:

—  To talk about an action that was in progress at a particular time in the past:

◦       What were you doing in the summer of 1999?

◦       Was it raining when you left home?

—  To talk about something that was already in progress when something else happened. (You use the past simple for the action that interrupts it.):

◦       The doorbell rang with while they were having breakfast.

NOTE:  As with the present progressive, this tense cannot be used with ‘state’ verbs:

◦       The fresh bread smelled wonderful. (NOT was smelling)

 

 

The past perfect:

—  Affirmative:

S + HAD + VPpp + C.

EX.:  I had finished the homework.

—  Negative:

S + HAD + NOT + VPpp + C.

EX.: He hadn’t painted the kitchen.

—  Interrogative:

HAD + S + VPpp + C?

EX.:  Had you worked?

 

The past perfect is used:

—  To talk about something that happened before another action in the past:

◦       I had already met Ed before he came to Bath.

◦       When I got to the station, the train had left.

 

 

The past perfect progressive:

—  Affirmative:

S + HAD + BEEN + VP + -ING + C.

EX.:  I had been travelling.

—  Negative:

S + HAD + NOT + BEEN +  VP + -ING + C.

EX.: She hadn’t been working.

—  Interrogative:

HAD + S + BEEN +  VP + -ING + C?

EX.:  Had you been watching TV?

 

The past perfect progressive is used:

—  With for or since to talk about an activity that started at a time further back in the past than something else:

◦       She hadn’t been living there very long when she met Mark.

—  To talk about an activity that had a result in the past:

◦       My hands were dirty because I had been gardening.

 

 

From: Oxford advanced learner’s dictionary. 7th edition.