Past Continuous Tense

The past continuous tense tells us what was happening at a time in the past. It uses a helping word (was or were) together with a verb that ends in -ing.

What You'll Learn

How to use was and were with a verb + -ing to talk about something that was happening in the past
How to pick the right helping word (was or were) based on who was doing the action
How to make simple sentences about actions that were going on at a past time

When to Use

Something was happening in the past: "I was eating my dinner at 7 PM."
An action that went on for some time: "The baby was sleeping in the afternoon."
Telling someone what was going on: "The children were playing in the garden."

How to Form

The formula

Subject + was/were + verb-ing

Which helping word to use

Subject	Helping word	Example
I	was	I was reading a book.
he, she, it	was	She was drawing a picture.
you, we, they	were	They were running in the park.

More examples

Subject	Helping word	Verb-ing	Full sentence
I	was	walking	I was walking to school.
He	was	eating	He was eating his rice.
The cat	was	sitting	The cat was sitting on the mat.
You	were	singing	You were singing a song.
We	were	playing	We were playing at the playground.
The birds	were	flying	The birds were flying in the sky.

Key Rules

Always use a helping word: You need was or were before the verb-ing. "She running yesterday" is wrong. "She was running yesterday" is right.
Match the helping word to the subject: Use was with "I" and one person or thing (he, she, it). Use were with "you", "we", or more than one (they).
The verb must end in -ing: The action word always has -ing at the end. "He was play" is wrong. "He was playing" is right.
Use it for the past: The past continuous tense is for things that were happening before, not things happening right now. Right now uses am/is/are. The past uses was/were.

Common Mistakes

Wrong	Right	Why
She running yesterday.	She was running yesterday.	You need "was" before "running"
I were reading a book.	I was reading a book.	Use "was" with "I", not "were"
They was playing.	They were playing.	Use "were" with "they", not "was"
He was play the guitar.	He was playing the guitar.	The verb must end in "-ing"

Clue Words

Words that tell you something was happening in the past:

yesterday, last night, just now, at that time, this morning (when talking about the past)

Questions that use past continuous:

What were you doing? What was she doing? What was happening?

"What were you doing yesterday?" "I was doing my homework."
"Last night, the dog was barking loudly."

Tip: When you see "yesterday" or "last night" and the action was going on for some time, it is a clue to use was/were + verb-ing!

Practice Tips

Think about yesterday: Think about what people were doing yesterday and say it out loud. "Mum was cooking. My brother was watching TV. I was studying."
Was or were check: After you write a sentence, check that you used the right helping word. "I" and one person or thing goes with was. "You", "we", and more than one goes with were.
Compare now and the past: Say what is happening now, then change it to the past. "I am reading" becomes "I was reading." "They are playing" becomes "They were playing."

Quick Reference

Subject	Helping word	Example sentence
I	was	I was walking to the hawker centre.
He / She / It	was	She was writing in her book.
The boy	was	The boy was kicking the ball.
You	were	You were doing well!
We	were	We were waiting for the school bus.
They	were	They were eating at the canteen.
The girls	were	The girls were skipping in the hall.

Past Continuous Tense (P2) (Primary 2)