Past Tense Practice

Part 1: Questions in the Simple Past

Tony just got back from his week long vacation in Spain. His parents are curious to know all about his trip, so they ask him many questions. You will find Tony’s answers below. Put the words in the proper order to create an appropriate question for each answer. The first one is done for you.

1. Question: have you fun did

Did you have fun?

Answer: Yes, I did! It was incredible!

2. Question: How long did you stay in Madrid?

Answer: I stayed in Madrid for three days.

3. Question: Where did you go then?

Answer: To Cordoba and Toledo!

4. Question: Were locals the nice?

Answer: Yes, they were very kind and outgoing!

5. Question: Did you see the Roman aqueducts?

Answer: Yes, they were amazing!

Part 2: Negative Statements in the Simple Past

Brad is a young, mischievous boy. His parents had to leave him with the babysitter for an evening when they went out to dinner and a movie. When they got back, the babysitter told them Brad had misbehaved. However, when Brad’s parents confronted him, he denied everything!

Answer every question with a negative statement. Use the contraction form of the negative auxiliary (didn’t). The first one is done for you.

1. Question: Did you misbehave?

Answer: No, I didn’t misbehave.

2. Question: Did you play soccer inside the house?

Answer: No, I didn’t play soccer inside the house.

3. Did you break grandma’s vase?

Answer: No, I didn’t break grandma’s vase.

4. Did you hide your vegetables under the tablecloth?

Answer: No, I didn’t hide my vegetables under the tablecloth.

5. Did you stick your tongue out at the babysitter?

Answer: No, I didn’t stick my tongue out at the babysitter.

Part 3: Past Progressive

Several bikes were stolen from the university campus over the weekend. Thanks to security cameras, the campus police have determined that the bikes were stolen some time Saturday night between the hours of 8:00- 10:00 PM. In an effort to catch the thief, the campus police are interviewing several suspects.

Each suspect, however, seems to have an alibi.

Use the past progressive to complete the statements. The first one is done for you.

Question for all suspects: What were you doing between the hours of 8-10PM on Saturday night?

1. Suspect 1: I was walking my dog.

2. Suspect 2: My wife and I were cooking dinner.

3. Suspect 3: I was having a drink with my friends.

4. Suspect 4: My friends and I were dancing at a nightclub.

5. Suspect 5: I was watching my a movie.

Part 4: Past Progressive or Simple Past?

Jane and Ron’s Night In

Read the story. Choose the correct verb form. The first one is done for you.

1. Last night, Jane and her husband, Ron, decided / were deciding to stay in because it rained/ was raining. Last night, Jane and her husband decided to stay in because it was raining.

2. First, they made / were making dinner together and ate / were eating it by candlelight.

3. Then, Ron washed / was washing the dishes.

4. When the kitchen was finally clean, they watched/ were watching a movie.

5. While they watched/ were watching the movie, a mouse quickly ran/ was quickly running across their floor.

6. When Jane saw it / was seeing it, she screamed/ was screaming.

7. Ron paused/ was pausing the movie, and ran/ was running after the mouse.

8. While he ran/ was running, he tripped/ was tripping over a shoe in the middle of the floor.

9. “I lost it!” he said / was saying with frustration, “I missed/ was missing it!”

10. Jane sighed/ was sighing and looked/ was looking at her husband.

11. Ron lay/ was lying on the floor on top of her shoe.

12. “How romantic!” Jane said / was saying, “You were going to catch a mouse for me!”

13. “Sorry to disappoint you, but I didn’t try/ wasn’t trying to catch the mouse.”

14. “I tried/ was trying to get back a piece of popcorn he stole when I tripped/ was tripping over your shoe.”