When do we use the past simple tense in English?
We use the past simple for:
1. Finished actions in the past
These are actions that started and finished in the past. The time is mentioned or clearly understood.
For example:
- I watched a movie yesterday.
- The meeting started at 8 o’clock. (Here “start” is the action.)
- You were born in 1980.
- She didn’t visit London last year.
- Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet.
- The Titanic sank in the Atlantic Ocean.
2. Past states or situations
These are things that were true in the past, but are not true now.
For example:
- They lived in San Francisco in the 1960s.
- She was very shy as a child.
- When I was little, I believed in Santa Claus.
- John had a moustache three years ago.
- People didn’t travel much in the past.
- Where did you work before?
3. Past habits or repeated actions
These are things that happened (or didn’t happen) repeatedly in the past, but not now. We often use words and phases like “always”, “often”, “usually”, “every day”, etc.
Note: The past simple in these sentences can often be replaced with “used to + base form” or “would + base form”.
For example:
- He usually worked at a hotel in summer.
- We walked to school every day.
- I never went to the beach when I was a kid.
4. Narration (stories) or lists of events
These can be real or fictional.
Note: We also use other tenses for narration.
For example:
- I walked into the room, then everyone stopped and looked at me.
- Today Frank got up late, played video games, then went to a pub.
- Once upon a time, there was a king who lived in a small village.
5. Giving more information after the present perfect
If we introduce news with the present perfect, we then often use the past simple to give specific details.
For example:
- I’ve lost my phone. I left it on the bus this morning.
- She has met the new manager. She spoke to him after the meeting.
- Police have arrested two suspects. They caught them at the airport last night.
6. Unreal or hypothetical present or future situations
We use the past simple form in second conditional and past subjunctive sentences.
Note: These are not past simple sentences. They just use the past simple form.
For example:
- If Frank studied, he would pass his exam.
- I wish I lived at the beach.
- Imagine you had a lot of money.
Here are some time words and phrases that we often use with the past simple:
- yesterday
- last night / last week / last month / last year
- ago (e.g. two years ago)
- in 2004
- in the 1990s
- when (e.g. when I was young/little, when I lived in Sydney)
- as a kid/child
- once upon a time (common in fairytales)