1. Grammar Presentation
Past Time
Page 17

2. SIMPLE PAST TENSE
For an action that was
FINISHED in the past.
Example Explanation
Weinlick needed to find a bride. He does not need to find a bride now
because he has found her, and he is
married.
He advertised on the Internet. He did this in the past, before he
found his bride.
He said he thinks commitment is
important.
He said this in the past. The second
verb “thinks” is in the present tense
because he still thinks this is true now.
They talked briefly on that day and
again on Tuesday when Runze
turned in the completed survey.
These events took place in the past.

3. PAST PROGRESSIVE =
PAST CONTINUOUS
For an action that was IN
PROGRESS when
another thing happened in
the past.
Example Explanation
As the date was getting closer,
Weinlick … knew he had to do
something.
During the time when the date was
getting closer, Weinlick realized that
he had to do something.
My parents met when they were
studying in high school.
During the time when they were
studying, they met each other. (Their
meeting came during the time when
they were studying.)
She was looking for someone really
special.
In this case, the simple past verb is
implied. During the time when she
was looking for someone special, she
read the application from Kunze.
Note: the past progressive is used in
CONTRAST with another verb in the
simple past. The simple past verb may
be STATED or IMPLIED.

4. PAST TIME: “USED TO”
For an action that was
continued or repeated in
the past.
Example Explanation
Arranged marriages used to be
common in Europe, but they are not
now.
This custom continued for a long time
in the past (it gradually disappeared
during the 1800’s). It is not a custom
in Europe now.
I used to walk to school when I was a
child.
I did this many times in the past.
I used to be afraid of the dentist. I was afraid of the dentist for a period
of time in the past (but I am not afraid
of the dentist any more).

5. PAST TIME: “WOULD”
For an action that was
repeated in the past.
Example Explanation
When friends asked Weinlick when he
was going to tie the knot, he would
say the didn’t know.
His friends asked him this again and
again in the past, and every time they
asked him, he said that he didn’t
know.
I would often walk to school when I
was a child.
I did this many times in the past.
Some days she would work for
twelve hours.
She sometimes did this in the past.
Every time I got a low grade, I would
become discouraged.
I became discouraged repeatedly in
the past. (This sentence implies that
low grades do not make me
discouraged any more.)
Note: For a repeated action, past
with “would” and past with “used
to” mean the same thing. However,
“would” is not used for a continued
action.

6. PAST TIME BEFORE A
TIME IN THE PAST:
PAST PERFECT
For an action that took
place before another
action in the past.
Example Explanation
I had studied English in high school
before I came to the U.S.
You can also say I studied English in
high school before I came to the U.S.
Runze said the day was the most
incredible she had ever experienced.
Runze was referring to other days that
happened before the day she was
talking about.
He had met her before the wedding. Their meeting happened before the
wedding. (Implied: He had met her
before the wedding took place.)
He met her before the wedding is also
correct.
He hadn’t met his bride yet. Implied: He hadn’t met her yet when
he planned the wedding.
Note: Many students use the past
perfect incorrectly. We only use the past
perfect IN COMPARISON WITH another
action in the simple past. The simple past
action may be STATED or IMPLIED.

7. Be Careful!
had + past participle
is different from
had + infinitive!

8. He hadn’t met his bride yet
(past perfect)
so
he knew he had to do
something
(= it was necessary for him to
do something).

9. PAST TIME BEFORE A TIME IN THE PAST:
PAST PERFECT PROGRESSIVE =
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
For an action that continued from a time before the past up until a
later time in the past (STATED or IMPLIED).
Example Explanation
I had been studying English for
three years when I came to the U.S.
I studied English for three years, up
until the time when I came to the U.S.
He had been planning the wedding
for months.
He planned the wedding for months
and then he started looking for his
bride (implied).
He had long been pondering
marriage and he had known for some
time that he was going to get married
in June of 1998.
He had been pondering marriage up
until the time this story began.

10. Be Careful!
Don’t use progressive tense
with non-action verbs!

11. He had been pondering
marriage
(past perfect progressive)
and
he had known
(past perfect)
that he was going to get
married in June 1998.

12. PAST TIME: AFTER A TIME IN THE PAST BUT BEFORE NOW
“FUTURE IN THE PAST”
Your book shows a confusing way to think
about sentences with “was going to” or
“would” in the past tense.
It is easier to think about this as indirect
speech.

13. PAST TIME: AFTER A TIME IN THE PAST BUT BEFORE NOW
“FUTURE IN THE PAST”
Present Tense Past Tense
He knows that he is going to marry
soon.
He knew that he was going to marry
soon.
He knows when the wedding will be. He knew when the wedding would be.
He isn’t sure who his bride will be. He wasn’t sure who his bride would
be.
Neither Weinlick nor Runze knows
who will ultimately be chosen.
Neither Weinlick nor Runze knew who
would ultimately be chosen.