Past simple
Regular -ed forms, irregulars, and questions and negatives with did.
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Past simple: worked examples
Five from the set, with the answer filled in and the rule that decides it. The remaining questions are in the answer key below.
- 01
The bus stopped outside the school ten minutes ago.
Short verbs ending consonant-vowel-consonant double the last letter.
- 02
We planned the whole trip last summer.
- 03
I studied for the test all last weekend.
A consonant before -y turns it into -ied: study → studied.
- 04
Last year they travelled to five different countries.
In British English a verb ending in -l doubles it: travelled.
- 05
We played football in the park yesterday.
A vowel before -y keeps the y: play → played.
Answer key: all 24 questions
- 01The bus stopped outside the school ten minutes ago.
- 02We planned the whole trip last summer.
- 03I studied for the test all last weekend.
- 04Last year they travelled to five different countries.
- 05We played football in the park yesterday.
- 06I saw a great film last Saturday.
- 07We ate pizza for dinner yesterday.
- 08She took a lot of photos on holiday last summer.
- 09He bought those shoes in Italy two years ago.
- 10Anna brought a cake to the party last night.
- 11I wrote an email to my teacher last night.
- 12Yesterday I put my keys on the kitchen table.
- 13In the test yesterday I knew every answer.
- 14We didn't go to school yesterday because it was a holiday.
- 15She didn't do her homework last night.
- 16My dad made a big breakfast for us last Sunday.
- 17They didn't tell us about the party last week.
- 18Did you enjoy the concert last night?
- 19Where did you go on holiday last year?
- 20Did you hear the new song on the radio yesterday?
- 21I was at home all day yesterday.
- 22They were very happy with their exam results last week.
- 23Was the weather good when you were in Spain?
- 24My brother wasn't at the party last night.
- Past simple vs past continuousThe past continuous describes what was already going on; the past simple reports what happened.
- The past simpleThe past simple reports something finished, usually at a stated time.
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