The simple past tense

The simple past tense

1. The Simple Past Tense is one of the most common tenses in English. The simple past tense is used: 1. Use the simple past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. The specific time is not mentioned sometimes, but a specific time is in mind.

2. We use the simple past tense to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions occur in a time sequence: first, second, third…

 3. The simple past can be used with a duration (a long action) which starts and ends in the past. A duration is often used with expressions like “for three years,” “for twenty minutes,” “all day,” or “all year.”
Examples: I lived in Morelia for four years. Alonso studied Chinese for seven years. We sat at the beach all day. They talked on the phone for ten minutes. How long did you wait for Sharon? I waited for about half-an-hour. 

4. To tell a story. Example: The old man went into a bar and asked for a beer... 5. The simple past tense is often used with certain phrases of time: yesterday, last night, last month, last year, five years ago. In the simple past a specific time is used to show when an action began or finished. Its form is the same with all subjects (except for the verb be ). Many verbs in English form their past tense with –ED and are called regular verbs. To express a habit in the past.