A2ElementaryTenses

Past simple

Finished actions and events in the past: worked, went, didn't go, did you go?

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We use the past simple for actions and situations that finished in the past. Often we say or know when. The form is the same for all persons: I worked, she worked, they worked.

Regular and irregular verbs

Regular verbs add -ed. Irregular verbs have their own past forms, and you need to learn them.

Verb type	Infinitive	Past simple
regular	work, play, live	worked, played, lived
irregular	go, see, buy	went, saw, bought

I watched a film last night.
We went to the seaside last summer.
I lost my phone two days ago.
Incorrect: I buyed a new jacket.
Correct: I bought a new jacket.
Buy is irregular, so it doesn't take -ed.

Spelling of -ed

Some verbs change their spelling when they add -ed. In British English we also double a final l after one vowel, even in longer verbs: travel → travelled, cancel → cancelled.

Verb ends in	Rule	Example
-e	add -d	live → lived
consonant + y	y → -ied	study → studied
short verbs: one vowel + one consonant	double the consonant	stop → stopped, plan → planned (but visit → visited, open → opened)
most other verbs	add -ed	watch → watched, play → played

He studied English at school for five years.
The bus stopped outside the station.
We travelled round Scotland by train.

Pronunciation of -ed

The ending -ed has three sounds. Which one you hear depends on the last sound of the verb, not the last letter. It is a separate syllable only after t or d.

Last sound of the verb	-ed sounds like	Example
t or d	/ɪd/	wanted, needed, visited, decided
p, k, f, s, sh, ch	/t/	stopped, worked, laughed, missed, watched
any other sound, and all vowel sounds	/d/	played, lived, opened, called, stayed

We walked to the station.
(Walked is one syllable: /wɔːkt/.)
She wanted a ticket to Leeds.
(Wanted has two syllables: /ˈwɒntɪd/.)
Incorrect: worked said as two syllables, "work-id"
Correct: worked said as one syllable, /wɜːkt/
Work ends in a k sound, so -ed is only a /t/ sound, with no extra syllable.

Negative: didn't + verb

Use didn't (did not) + the infinitive for all persons. Didn't already shows the past, so the verb doesn't change.

I didn't buy anything at the market.
She didn't reply to my message.
Incorrect: I didn't went to school.
Correct: I didn't go to school.
After didn't, use the infinitive: go, not went.

Questions and short answers

Put did before the subject and use the infinitive. When who or what is the subject, there is no did.

Question	Yes	No
Did you call him?	Yes, I did.	No, I didn't.
Did she like the film?	Yes, she did.	No, she didn't.

Did you see the match on Saturday? Yes, I did.
Where did you go on holiday?
Who told you?
(Who is the subject, so there is no did.)
Incorrect: Did you saw him?
Correct: Did you see him?

Was and were

Be has two past forms, was and were, and doesn't use did.

Subject	Positive	Negative
I, he, she, it	was	wasn't
you, we, they	were	weren't

It was very cold yesterday.
Were you at home at eight? No, I wasn't.
Incorrect: I was go to the shop.
Correct: I went to the shop.
Don't put was before a verb with no ending. Went already shows the past.

Finished actions at a known time

Use the past simple with time words like yesterday, last night, last week, in 2019, two days ago, when I was a child.

I visited my grandparents last weekend.
We moved here three years ago.
(Ago comes after the time.)
Incorrect: Yesterday I go to the cinema.
Correct: Yesterday I went to the cinema.
Yesterday doesn't make the verb past. The verb must change too.
Incorrect: I have seen him yesterday.
Correct: I saw him yesterday.
With a finished time like yesterday, use the past simple, not the present perfect.

Stories: one action after another

Use the past simple to tell a story, one event after another.

She got up, had a shower and left for work.
We arrived at the hotel, put our bags in the room and went out for dinner.

Past habits and states

Use it for things that happened many times, or were true for a time, and are finished now.

When I was a child, I walked to school every day.
My grandparents lived in a small village.

Practise this rule

Where this rule sits

All A2 rules Tenses: all rules

Syllabus topics on this page

A2ElementaryPast Simple: regular verbs
A2ElementaryPast Simple: irregular verbs
A2ElementaryPast Simple: negatives & questions

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Past of be: was / wereA1Beginner