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Grammar: Past tenses: Simple, Continuous, erfect.

Texts:

1. Ancient astronomy

2. Astronomy after the 20^th century.

Past Simple (I waited) or Past Continuous (I was waiting)

Compare the Past Simple and the Past Continuous

Past Perfect (I had eaten)

When we talk about an event or situation in past time we use the Past Simple (e.g. flew); if we talk about an event before that time, we use the Past Perfect (e.g. had been). Here is example.

1. If we talk about a series of past events in order, we use the Past Simple:

A I saw a beautiful bird in my garden. B I went to get my camera. C The bird flew away. D I returned with my camera.

2. We need the Past Perfect to make it clear that one of the events is not in order: D I returned with my camera. C The bird had already flown away. (The bird had gone before I returned.)

Also, compare these sentences using when:

Past Perfect: When I returned with my camera, the bird had flown away. (The bird went before I returned.)

Past Simple: When I returned with my camera, the bird flew away.

(The bird went after I retuned.)

3. The Past Perfect is used in reported speech:

‘I have suffered from asthma for many years.’ She told the doctor that she had suffered from asthma for many years.

Exercise 1

Use the Past Simple and Past Continuous to make sentences from the words in brackets.

0 (The police/arrive/while/I/have/breakfast)

The police arrived while I was having breakfast.

1. (The storm/start/while/they/drive/home)

_______________________________________

2. (I/see/an accident/while/I/wait/for the bus)

_______________________________________

3. (Mary/go/to several concerts/while/she/stay/ in London)

_______________________________________

4. (My father/cook/the dinner/when/he/burn/ his fingers)

_______________________________________

5. (The soldiers/prepare/to leave/when/the bomb/ explode)

_______________________________________

Exercise 2

Complete these texts using the Past Simple or the Past Continuous of the verbs in brackets.

0 Beethoven wrote nine symphonies; he was writing (write) another symphony when he died.

1. Last Saturday Tom wanted to make two salads. He_____________(make) the first one in five minutes. He_______________(make) the second one when his guests_______________ (arrive), and they_______________ (help) him to finish it.

2. The artist Gaudi _______________ (design) several houses in Barcelona, Spain. Later he _______________ (start) work on a church. He _______________ (work) on the church when he _______________ (die).

3. Last month a bank robber (escape) while the police (take) him to prison. Later they (catch) him again, and this time they (lock) him up without any problem.

4. Philip’s football team were lucky last Saturday. After 20 minutes they _______________ (lose), but in the end they_______________ (win) the game by 4 goals to 2.