Past Continuous tense

Introduction

One evening, in the little town of Gramville, a boy named Sam was looking out of the window. He saw his neighbors doing different things—his friend Mia was playing with her dog, his grandma was knitting a sweater, & the birds were chirping happily.

Just then, his teacher, Mr. Collins, walked by & said, "Sam, do you know you are witnessing actions in the past continuous tense?"

Sam’s adventure of learning past continuous tenses had begun!

What is Past Continuous Tense?

The past continuous tense describes actions that were happening at a certain time in the past. These actions continued for some time before stopping.

Formation of Past Continuous Tense:

🔹 Was/Were + Verb (-ing)

"Was" is used with singular subjects (I, he, she, it).
"Were" is used with plural subjects (we, you, they).

Examples of Past Continuous Tense:

Subject	Helping Verb	Main Verb (-ing Form)	Past Continuous Tense Sentence
I	was	reading	I was reading a book.
She	was	painting	She was painting a picture.
They	were	watching	They were watching a movie.
We	were	playing	We were playing in the park.

How to Use Past Continuous Tense?

✅ To show an action happening at a specific time in the past.

Example: At 6 PM yesterday, I was eating dinner.

✅ To describe two past actions happening at the same time.

Example: While I was studying, my brother was listening to music.

✅ To describe an interrupted past action.

Example: I was sleeping when the phone rang.

✅ To set the scene in a story.

Example: The sun was shining, & the birds were singing.

50 Examples of Past Continuous Tense Sentences

I was watching TV when my mom called me.
She was dancing at the party.
They were playing football in the park.
We were studying for the test.
My sister was baking a cake.
The baby cried all night.
The birds chirping in the morning.
There was heavy rain yesterday.
I was reading a book, when the power went off.
The kids were laughing at the funny story.
He was driving home when he saw an accident.
The teacher was explaining the lesson.
My parents were talking about our holiday plans.
We were walking to school when it started raining.
The dog was barking loudly.
The players were practicing for the match.
I was cleaning my room when my friend arrived.
They were singing their favorite song.
Grandma was knitting a sweater.
He was writing a letter to his friend.

A Fun Story: A Day in Past Continuous Tense

On beautiful morning Emma was drawing a colourful picture in garden. Her brother Jack was playing with his toy car and their mother was baking a yummy cake. And there was their dog, Bruno, chasing a butterfly & knocking Emma’s paint over!

"Oh no!" she cried. Their father was reading a newspaper & did not pay attention to the mess. Bruno was wagging his tail, proud of himself like he just did something good!

Then their mother came outside & saw where it was at. She laughed, “You all were having such a great time! And so a minor accident turned into a happy memory.

past continuous tense

Quiz: Test Your Knowledge!

What is the correct past continuous sentence?
a) She was cook dinner.
b) She was cooking dinner.
c) She were cooking dinner.
Which helping verb is used with "we" in past continuous tense?
a) Was
b) Were
c) Is
Identify the past continuous sentence.
a) They play outside.
b) They were playing outside.
c) They played outside.
What is the correct past continuous sentence?
a) We were watching a movie.
b) We are watching a movie.
c) We watched a movie.
Complete the sentence:
"I was ____ (read) a book when the phone rang."
a) was read
b) was reading
c) were reading

Fun Facts About Past Continuous Tense!

📌 Simple english with past continuous tense is known as the past progressive tense.

📌 It is often used in storytelling to paint scenery in the background.
📌 Punch list: Some verbs (e.g., “know,” “love” & “believe”) are rarely used in the continuous past ⌨ (e.g., ❌ was knowing the answer → ✅ knew the answer).
📌 The longest past continuous is over 100 words long.

Key Takeaways

✔ The past continuous is used for actions that were occurring at a particular time in the past.

✔ It is created with was/were + verb (-ing).

✔ It describes ongoing actions, simultaneous actions, interrupted actions, & settings of a story.

✔ Past continuous tense usages function storytelling & conversations.

Conclusion

Using past continuous tense allows us to talk about events that were already in progress at some point in the past. We can always have some fun with this tense, no matter if we are watching a movie, playing in the park or cooking dinner!