past time Flashcards
ways of describing time
- Tense
- past
- present
- future
- Aspect
- simple
- continuous
- perfect
- perfect-continuous
Tense may tell you
generally, when something happens
Aspect
gives more info on how it happens
Simple
•Completed actions
Ex. turning on a light switch.
Continuous
Action in progress; has duration
Ex. driving a car.
Perfect
•1 action completed before another.
Perfect-Continuous
•Action in progress happened before another
Simple Past
[VERB+ed] or irregular form
The simple past can express other meanings, as well, such as:
- A series of completed actions
- Duration in the past (i.e. I lived in Dubai for two years.)
- Habits in the past (i.e. They never studied for exams.)
- Past facts or generalizations (i.e. People didn’t care about oil much until recently.)
Past Progressive/Continuous
[was/were + present participle]
The past progressive can express other meanings, as well, such as:
- Specific time as an interruption (i.e. Last night at 6 PM, I was eating dinner.)
- Parallel actions (i.e. I was studying while he was making dinner.)
- Repetition and irritation with “always” (i.e. She was always coming to class late.)
Past Perfect
[had + past participle]
The past perfect can express other meanings, as well, such as:
•Specific times with the past perfect (i.e. She had visited her cousins twice before moving to France in 1996.)
Past Perfect Continuous
[had been + present participle]
difference between past continuous and past perfect continuous
they have similar meanings. However,past continuous emphasizes interrupted actions while past perfect continuous focuses on a duration of time before something in the past.
