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Past Continuous Tense

1. Formation

The Past Continuous tense is formed using:

Subject + was/were + present participle (-ing form)

Examples:

• I was reading a book.
• She was watching TV.
• They were playing football.

2. Uses of the Past Continuous

A. Actions in progress at a specific time in the past

• At 8 PM last night, I was studying.
• She was sleeping when I called her.
• We were having dinner at that time.

B. Two past actions happening at the same time

• While I was cooking, she was setting the table.
• He was playing the guitar while they were singing.

C. Interrupted actions in the past

The Past Continuous is used for an action that was happening when another action (in the Past Simple) interrupted it.

• I was watching TV when the phone rang.
• She was walking home when it started to rain.

D. Descriptions of atmosphere in the past

• The sun was shining, and the birds were singing.
• People were chatting while music was playing.

3. Common Time Expressions

• At (specific time) – I was sleeping at 10 PM.
• While – While they were eating, the doorbell rang.
• When – I was driving when I saw the accident.
• All day / all night – She was working all day.

4. Differences Between Past Continuous and Past Simple