In English if we think about an action that starts and finishes in past we use the past simple. We only use the past continuous when it is necessary to show:
- Duration
- Repetition
- Comparison of the length of two simultaneous actions
Past continuous (I was doing)The past continuous focuses on the duration of past situations and activities. • We were having dinner when Lisa returned home. (We had started eating before Lisa returned home and were still having dinner when she returned home)
• Carl was studying biology at 9 p.m. (He had already started studying biology before 9 p.m. and he was still doing it at that time) • They were playing tennis during the summer holydays. (They continued to play tennis for a long time during the summer holidays) Click here for more information. |
Past simple (I did)The past simple focuses on past actions as completed past events. • We had dinner when Lisa returned home. (We waited until Lisa returned home before starting dinner)
• Carl studied biology at p.m. (He started studying biology at 9 p.m.) • They played tennis during the summer holidays. (They played during the summer holidays perhaps once, perhaps more often -the sentence doesn't tell us) Click here for more information.> |
Points to note
We don't normally use the past continuous with certain verbs describing states:
This castle belonged to the Queen of England.
