PAST SIMPLE I CONTINUOUS

3. Fill in the blanks with the past simple or continuous of the verbs in brackets:

1. James and Amy (wait) for the 9:30 train when I .. (see) them.

While Sue 2 (cook) spaghetti, Tom | (prepare) a tomato salad.

3. The teacher ..

(not/ accept) John's

excuses for being late again. 4.1 (phone) Paula last Monday, but

• she * (not/be) in; her mum I (tell) me she (jog) in the park. 5. ... (the teacher/explain) how to

I I solve the maths problem yesterday?" "Yes, she 6. While Alice (draw) a picture, Lewis

(have) a relaxing bath. 7. The house (burn) for hours until the fire brigade .. (put) the fire out. 8. What (Jenny/ do) when her boss unexpectedly (come) into her office?

9. Nobody (can/ hear) what Mary (tell) Sue at the party yesterday. .(not/understand) how to get

to the station.

11. They (drive) home when the car

I suddenly (stop). . 12. A strong wind (blow) all

I night long.

• 13. Jenny ... --- (get) really disappointed I when the teacher (tell) her that her

history project .. .. (not/ be) as good as

she had expected, so she (have) to

rewrite it.

14. The company (apologize) the delay of the flight to New York. 15. Why (Andy/not/ wait) for us

for

| at the station yesterday? • 16. The police (come) as soon as the I bank manager (call) them.

• 17. The children (play) in the street until it (get) dark and they I

(go) home.

18. The workers s (go) on strike because their boss . (not/give) them a pay rise.

19. Paul finally his driving test.

1. James and Amy were waiting for the 9:30 train when I saw them.

Explanation: The action of waiting for the train was happening in the past at a specific point in time, so we use the past continuous tense for "wait" (were waiting). The action of seeing them also happened in the past, so we use the past simple tense for "see" (saw).

2. While Sue was cooking spaghetti, Tom was preparing a tomato salad.

Explanation: The action of cooking spaghetti was happening in the past at a specific point in time, so we use the past continuous tense for "cook" (was cooking). The action of preparing a tomato salad was also happening in the past at the same time, so we use the past continuous tense for "prepare" (was preparing).

3. The teacher did not accept John's excuses for being late again.

Explanation: This sentence is in the past simple tense because it describes a completed action (the teacher not accepting the excuses).

4. I phoned Paula last Monday, but she was not in; her mum told me she was jogging in the park.

Explanation: The action of phoning Paula and her not being in happened in the past at a specific point in time, so we use the past simple tense for "phone" (phoned) and the past continuous tense for "be" (was). The action of Paula's mom telling me about her jogging in the park was also happening in the past, so we use the past simple tense for "tell" (told) and the past continuous tense for "jog" (was jogging).

5. Did the teacher explain how to solve the maths problem yesterday?

Explanation: The main verb "explain" is in the past simple tense because it is a question that asks if the teacher performed an action in the past. "Did" is the auxiliary verb used to form questions in the past simple tense. "How to solve the maths problem" is an infinitive phrase that describes the action that the teacher potentially explained.

6. Yes, she was drawing a picture, while Lewis was having a relaxing bath.

Explanation: The action of drawing a picture and having a bath were happening in the past at the same time, so we use the past continuous tense for "draw" (was drawing) and "have" (was having).

7. The house had been burning for hours until the fire brigade put the fire out.

Explanation: The action of the house burning happened in the past and continued for a period of time, so we use the past continuous tense for "burn" (had been burning). The action of the fire brigade putting the fire out happened in the past, so we use the past simple tense for "put" (put).

8. What was Jenny doing when her boss unexpectedly came into her office?

Explanation: The main verb "do" is in the past continuous tense because it describes an action that was happening in the past when another action (the boss coming into the office) interrupted it. "Came" is the past simple tense of "come."

9. Nobody could hear what Mary was telling Sue at the party yesterday.

Explanation: The action of hearing and telling happened in the past at a specific point in time, so we use the past simple tense for "could hear" and the past continuous tense for "tell" (was telling).

10. I didn't understand how to get to the station.

Explanation: The main verb "understand" is in the past simple tense because it describes a completed action. "Get to the station" is an infinitive phrase that describes the action that the speaker didn't understand.

11. They were driving home when the car suddenly stopped.

Explanation: The action of driving home and the car stopping happened in the past at the same time, so we use the past continuous tense for "drive" (were driving) and the past simple tense for "stop" (stopped).

12. A strong wind was blowing all night long.

Explanation: The action of the wind blowing was happening in the past at a specific point in time, so we use the past continuous tense for "blow" (was blowing).

13. Jenny got really disappointed when the teacher told her that her history project was not as good as she had expected, so she had to rewrite it.

Explanation: The action of getting disappointed, telling, and having to rewrite the project happened in the past, so we use the past simple tense for "got" and "told" and the past perfect tense for "had expected" and "had to rewrite."

14. The company apologized for the delay of the flight to New York.

Explanation: The main verb "apologized" is in the past simple tense because it describes a completed action. "For the delay of the flight to New York" is a prepositional phrase that provides additional information about what the company apologized for.

15. Why wasn't Andy waiting for us at the station yesterday?

Explanation: The main verb "wait" is in the past continuous tense because it describes an action that was expected to happen but didn't. "Wasn't" is the negative form of "was" in the past simple tense. "For us at the station yesterday" is a prepositional phrase that provides additional information about when and where Andy was expected to wait.

16. The police came as soon as the bank manager called them.

Explanation: The action of the police coming and the bank manager calling them happened in the past at different times, so we use the past simple tense for "came" and "called."

17. The children were playing in the street until it got dark and they went home.

Explanation: The action of playing in the street and the action of it getting dark and the children going home happened in the past at different times, so we use the past continuous tense for "were playing" and the past simple tense for "got" and "went."

18. The workers went on strike because their boss had not given them a pay rise.

Explanation: The actions of going on strike and not giving a pay rise happened in the past at different times, so we use the past simple tense for "went" and the past perfect tense for "had not given."

19. Paul finally passed his driving test.

Explanation: The main verb "pass" is in the past simple tense because it describes a completed action.