Past Tenses

Karla Lorelay Angeles Blancas         A01167786

* PAST TENSES *

In this session I’m going to talk about past tenses and how can we use them.

Simple Past
Past Perfect
Past Perfect Continuous
Present Perfect
Past Continuous
Used to
Present Perfect Continuous

Simple Past

We use the simple past for talk about actions or situations that we made in the past or that are finished.

We can’t use present perfect when we said the time or place of the event.

Examples:

The ship exploded yesterday at 11:00pm

I went to the festival.

When Andrea bit the cake, I applauded.

Past Perfect

We used past perfect to describe something that happened before a specific time in the past.

We can used past perfect with the simple past tense to show which of two events occurred first.

Also we can use it for justifications

Examples:

By April, Luis had started his new job.

Rosa had already seen the movie when it came out on DVD.

I’d started a new project so I could finish my career.

Past Perfect Continuous

Is the past of the past but we use it for emphasis the duration of the action in the past.

We used it to show that something cause and effect.

Example:

I had been waiting for you for more than 15 minutes.                     

They had been talking for over two hours before Alex arrived.

Tamara is so tired because she had been working all the night.

Present Perfect

We use it when an action is completed at an unspecific time in the past.

We can use it to describe actions that began in the past, continue into the present, and may continue into the future.

For unfinished actions, we can emphasis the things that happened in the past.

For life experiences and achievements.

Example:

I’ve already heard that CD.

She’s seen him twice.

Have you listened to any pop lately?

Used to

We use for past habits.

Example:

I used to drink milk in the morning.

Raul used to talk with Sara.

Ricardo used to watch Pokémon.

Past Continuous

We used it for a continuous action in the past but that other action interrupted.

We can used in the stories for describe the atmosphere.

We used for two actions that happened in the past at the same time.

For repeated actions in the past, we usually use always.

Example:

The sun was shining, the dogs were barking and the children were playing.

I was cutting vegetables when Norma talked me.

While my sister was watching TV, my parents were talking.

We can’t use this tense or any continuous tense with stative verbs

Present Perfect Continuous

We used to describe actions that began in the past, continue in the present, and may continue into the future.

For action that recently stopped or is still going on.

For action that influence in the present but you finished in the past.

Present Perfect Continuous emphasis the duration of the actions.

Example:

My dad has been working for two years.

I have been living here since 1995.

 

I hope that this information help you