Past Progressive

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The past progressive tense is a verb form used to refer to an action that was ongoing at a time in the past.

The past progressive is formed using the past tense of the auxiliary verb “be” (i.e., “was/were”) along with the present participle (“ing” form) of a main verb (e.g., “I was thinking”).

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How to use the past progressive tense

The past progressive tense (also called the past continuous) is formed using “was/were” and the present participle form of the main verb (e.g., “I was singing”).

The past progressive tense is used to refer to an ongoing past action that was interrupted by another past action (in the simple past tense) or to two past actions that were taking place at the same time.

It can also be used to indicate that something was habitual (usually in a critical way). Examples:

I was sleeping when the alarm went off.

While John was cooking dinner, Mary was cleaning the house.

David was always complaining about something.

Note:In the past progressive, the conjunctions “while” and “when” are commonly used to introduce a subordinate clause that provides additional context to the action described in the main clause.

• “While” is typically used before a past progressive form to indicate that two actions were taking place simultaneously (e.g., “I was gardening while it was raining”).
• “When” is typically used before a past simple form to indicate that this action interrupted another ongoing action (e.g., “Jean was reading when the phone rang”).

It’s important to note that only one of these conjunctions is typically used in a sentence. Using both conjunctions in the same sentence will confuse your meaning.

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Past simple vs. past continuous

Both the past simple and past continuous are used to talk about past action. However, they have different functions:

• The past simple is used to indicate that an action was completed in the past.
• The past continuous is used to emphasize that an action was ongoing in the past. Sentences that use the past continuous often contain a clause in the past simple to indicate that the ongoing action was interrupted by another action.

Examples: Past simple vs. past continuous

Note: Most stative verbs (e.g., “know,” “want,” or “love”) cannot be used in the past continuous tense (with the exception of “be”). The simple past or past perfect tense is used instead.

• I was wanting to go home.
• I wanted to go home.
• I had wanted to go home.

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How to form negatives

In the past continuous, negative statements are formed by adding the adverb “not” after the auxiliary verb “was/were.” This is often contracted (e.g., “wasn’t/weren’t”).

Examples: Negative past continuous sentences:

They were not working when I called.

John felt that he wasn’t reaching his full potential.

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How to form questions

To ask a yes–no question using the past continuous, put “was/were” before the subject of the sentence, followed by the present participle of the main verb.

Examples: Past continuous tense questions:

Was Tom exercising when he hurt his back?

Were you studying when the power went out?

To ask a question starting with a wh-word (an interrogative pronoun like “who” or an interrogative adverb like “when”), follow the same order as above, but add the pronoun or adverb at the start of the sentence. Examples: Past continuous tense questions:

Where was Anthony going when you saw him?

What were you expecting?

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