Past Tenses

Question 1

Past Simple

Answer 1

• Main uses:
- completed past action/state
- politeness
- reported speech

Question 2

Unreal past (=simple past)

Answer 2

• Refers to present or future hypothetical situations
- 2nd Conditional: “If I won,…”
- Wishes: “I wish I knew you”
- “It’s time”: “It’s time you went out”
- “Would rather” + 👤: “I’d rather you asked me first”

Question 3

Past Continous/Progressive
(Was/were + -ing)

Answer 3

•Main uses:
- ongoing past action w/ duration at a specific moment.
- two simultaneous actions in the past
- vague future plans (“I was thinking of going out”)

Question 4

Past Perfect
(Had + 3rd column/past participle)

Answer 4

• Main uses:
- Action before another past action
- Counterfactual/3rd Conditional (“contrary to fact” // “had” ; “would have”)
- Reported speech
- Past Perfect Continous: (“had” + “been” + -ing) durative action before another past action