What is past continuous time?
The past continuous tense, also known as the past progressive tense, refers to a continuing action or state that was happening at some point in the past. The past continuous tense is formed by combining the past tense of to be (i.e., was/were) with the verb’s present participle (-ing word).
Which tense is used to express that an action started in the past and still continuing till now?
The Present Perfect Continuous tense is used to describe something that started happening in the past, continuously happened up to the present, and still happens during the present.
What is the rule of past continuous?
In order to form the past continuous tense, we use the past tense of the verb be followed by the present participle of the verb. The present participle is a form of a verb that ends in the suffix -ing. For example, the present participle of read is reading.
Has been is past continuous?
The past perfect continuous tense (also known as the past perfect progressive tense) shows that an action that started in the past continued up until another time in the past. The past perfect continuous tense is constructed using had been + the verb’s present participle (root + -ing).
What is past continuous and example?
The past continuous is formed from the past tense of “to be” with the base of the main verb plus the ending “-ing” form of the verb. The past continuous tense is “was watching.” Another example of this tense is: We were playing football when he sprained his wrist last week. The past continuous tense is “were playing.”
How do you teach the past continuous?
Describe an important past event and then fill in the details as a painter would fill in background details by using the past continuous form. This immediately illustrates the idea that the past continuous is used to set the context of what was happening at that moment in time.
Is used for actions stared in the past and continue in the present?
Present Perfect is used when an action started in the past and continues into the present.
What is the past tense of currently?
‘Currently’, as defined by OED, means “At the present time.” This being the case, any use of the word ‘currently’ when talking about the past would be incorrect use of the word. “people who had lived here or were living here at the time.”
Where do we use past continuous?
We generally use the past continuous to talk about actions and states in progress (happening) around a particular time in the past. It can emphasise that the action or state continued for a period of time in the past: A: Where was Donna last night?
What is past continuous with examples?
What are the uses of past continuous tense?
The past continuous (also called past progressive) is a verb tense which is used to show that an ongoing past action was happening at a specific moment of interruption, or that two ongoing actions were happening at the same time. Read on for detailed descriptions, examples, and past continuous exercises.
How do you write a past continuous question?
To make questions in the Past Continuous, put ‘was’/’were’ before the subject and add the ‘-ing’ form of the verb: What were you doing when you broke your leg?
What does it mean to continue in the present?
Continuing in the present doesn’t mean it has to be necessarily happening at the moment of speaking. Although it could. Incomplete action, action still continues in (to) the present. Note there is indication of duration: for 5 years. I started living here 5 years ago in the past and I continue living here in the present.
What’s the difference between past continuous and past simple?
Read the explanation to learn more. The past continuous and the past simple help us to show how two past actions or situations are connected. The past simple shows us that an action was in the past, not in the present. Regular past simple verbs have – ed at the end (e.g. called, played, arrived ).
When to use ” while ” and ” past continuous “?
While is certainly more common with the past continuous, but it is also possible to use when without changing the meaning. However, it is not possible to use while before the clause with the simple verb: He arrived while I was washing my car = correct. He arrived when I was washing my car = correct. I was washing my car when he arrived = correct
When does the past simple action take place?
The past simple action takes place at any time during the past continuous action, not at the exact midpoint. You are also right in thinking that another time reference that is not the past simple can ‘interrupt’ the past continuous action. It doesn’t have to be at the exact midpoint — it can be at any time during that period of time.