The past continuous tense is used for actions that occurred at a specific time in the past. Like the present continuous, it is formed using the verb “to be” as well as the verb+ing.
Grammatical Rules
Form
To form the past continuous we use the auxiliary verb “to be” as well as the verb+ing. The auxiliary verb “to be” is in the past simple tense, but keep in mind that “to be” is an irregular verb.
| Subject |
Auxiliary (to be) |
Gerund |
| I, he, she, it |
was |
talking, eating, learning, doing, going… |
| you, we, they |
were |
talking, eating, learning, doing, going… |
Structure
Subject + auxiliary verb (to be) + verb+ing.
Subject + auxiliary verb (to be) + “not” + verb+ing.
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I was not [wasn’t] talking.
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He was not [wasn’t] eating.
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They were not [weren’t] learning.
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3. Interrogative Sentences
Auxiliary verb (to be) + subject + verb+ing?
Uses
1. The past continuous is used for an action in progress in the past and that was interrupted. The action that caused the interruption is in the past simple. “When” and “while” signal the use of the past simple and past continuous. In general, we use the past simple directly after “when” and the past continuous after “while”.
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Jose called while I was watching the news.
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He was walking to work when he fell.
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Was it raining when you left?
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2. We use the past continuous to talk about actions or events that happened at a specific time in the past.
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Paula wasn’t living in Spain in 2005.
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We were still working at 10 o’clock last night.
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3. The past continuous is used for two actions that were occurring simultaneously in the past.
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My son was reading while I was cooking.
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They were talking very loudly while we were trying to watch the movie.
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Note: As we have seen, there are some verbs which may not be used in the continuous tenses. Further explanation, as well as a list of such verbs that cannot be used in the continuous tenses can be found in the lesson on the continuous verb tenses.
Note: As we have seen, there are some verbs which may not be used in the continuous tenses. Further explanation, as well as a list of such verbs that cannot be used in the continuous tenses can be found in the lesson on the continuous verb tenses.
El pasado continuo se utiliza para acciones que estaban pasando en un momento específico en el pasado. Como el presente continuo, se forma con el verbo auxiliar “to be” y el verbo+ing.
Grammatical Rules (Reglas gramaticales)
Form (Forma)
Para formar el pasado continuo se utiliza el verbo auxiliar “to be” y el verbo+ing. El verbo auxiliar “to be” está en el pasado simple, pero ten en cuenta que “to be” es un verbo irregular.
| Sujeto |
Auxiliar (to be) |
Verb+ing |
| I, he, she, it |
was |
talking, eating, learning, doing, going… |
| you, we, they |
were |
talking, eating, learning, doing, going… |
Structure (Estructura)
1. Affirmative Sentences (Frases afirmativas)
Sujeto + verbo auxiliar (to be) + verbo+ing.
Ejemplos:
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I was talking.(Estaba hablando.)
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He was eating.(Estaba comiendo.)
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They were learning.(Estaban aprendiendo.)
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2. Negative Sentences (Frases negativas)
Sujeto + verbo auxiliar (to be) + “not” + verbo+ing.
Ejemplos:
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I was not [wasn’t] talking.(No estaba hablando.)
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He was not [wasn’t] eating.(No estaba comiendo.)
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They were not [weren’t] learning.(No estaban aprendiendo.)
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3. Interrogative Sentences (Frases interrogativas)
Verbo auxiliar (to be) + sujeto + verbo+ing?
Ejemplos:
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Were you talking?(¿Estabas hablando?)
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Was he eating?(¿Estaba comiendo?)
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Were they learning?(¿Estaban aprendiendo?)
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Uses (Usos)
1. El pasado continuo se usa para una acción en desarrollo en el pasado cuando otra acción la interrumpe. La acción que interrumpe está en el pasado simple. “When” y “while” señalan el uso del pasado simple y continuo. En general, usamos el pasado simple directamente después de “when” y el pasado continuo después de “while”.
Ejemplos:
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Jose called while I was watching the news.(Jose llamó mientras estaba mirando las noticias.)
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He was walking to work when he fell.(Estaba caminando hacia su trabajo cuando se cayó.)
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Was it raining when you left?(¿Estaba lloviendo cuando te fuiste?)
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2. Se usa el pasado continuo para hablar sobre acciones en un tiempo específico en el pasado.
Ejemplos:
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Paula wasn’t living in Spain in 2005.(Paula no estaba viviendo en España en el 2005.)
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We were still working at 10 o’clock last night.(Todavía estábamos trabajando a las 10 anoche. )
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3. Se usa el pasado continuo para dos acciones que estaban ocurriendo al mismo tiempo en el pasado.
Ejemplos:
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My son was reading while I was cooking.(Mi hijo estaba leyendo mientras que yo estaba cocinando.)
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They were talking very loudly while we were trying to watch the movie.(Estaban hablando muy alto mientras nosotros estábamos intentando mirar la película.)
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Nota: Hay unos verbos que no solemos usar en los tiempos continuos. Ver una lista y explicación en la lección de los tiempos continuos de los verbos.
