Past Simple Tense in English

The Past Simple tense in English is used to talk about actions that happened in the past. Regular verbs form the past tense by adding -ed or -d, while irregular verbs have unique forms. Time expressions like “last,” “in,” “at,” and “ago” are important when using the past tense.

Regular Verbs

Regular verbs form the past tense by adding -ed or -d:

I walked to the school yesterday.

He watched “Madagascar 2” last year.

She finished her project last week.

Irregular Verbs

Irregular verbs have unique past tense forms:

I ate too many grapes.

I went to the cinema yesterday.

I drank too much sprite.

I bought a T-shirt last week.

I broke my leg last week.

Common irregular verbs include “go” (went), “drink” (drank), “eat” (ate), “break” (broke), and “buy” (bought).

Remember to use time expressions like “yesterday,” “last week,” and “too many” to provide context for your past tense sentences.

Note: To view a comprehensive list of irregular verbs and learn more about the past tense, refer to the Irregular Verb List in the Pre-Intermediate section.