One of my students has chosen the English name ‘Cherry’, so this song goes down well (especially when I try, and fail, to hit those high notes).
Now, down to business
Past tense – what is the past tense for:
eat // drink // see // become // live // travel // ride // sleep
Moving on – complete the sentence:
Last night I _____ Chinese food
Yesterday he ______ hot, sweet tea
She ______ all night
Marco Polo _______ famous for his travel stories.
He ______ from I___ to C________
In Thailand, Mr Paul _____ a large grey intelligent elephant.
Also he _____ many beautiful colourful temples
Now, past continuous
Make sentences using continuous form. Remember – verb + ing
What are they doing ? They are telling stories
Use flashcards. Have students ask and answer the questions. Call two students, one from each team and have them stand on a mark. Awards points for pronunciation as well as correct answers. Drill class to make sure everyone is taking part.
Next hand out six flashcards, three to each team.
Ask them, “What were you doing when I drank coffee ?” They must answer in the present continuous e.g. I was setting up the tent.
Finally, have a student mime an activity. Only that student’s team may answer.
Please Note: All photos are taken from Google Images or free photo sites, and are used for educational purposes only. No copyright infringement or offense is intended. If I have used your photo or image, and you wish me to remove it, just ask. This site is not monetized, I run it on my own dollar. Thank you.
Regular verbs: just add -‘ed’. However, as you see, in this list only one common verb, ‘want’, is regular.
NOTE: ‘to be’ is different:
I am hungry / You are hungry / She is hungry / We are hungry
Now, practice: In groups of three or four, ask each other questions in order to feel more natural using the past tense. Let’s start simply:
What did you do today ?
Each student takes turns describing their day. Use these photos to help you.
Extra practice:
buy / drink / surf the internet / help parents / cook / do homework
Present tense ——– Past tense
act —— acted
go —- went
learn —— learned OR learnt
play — played
read —– read (pronounced ‘red)
ride —— rode
sleep —– slept
watch —- watched (pronounced ‘watch -t‘)
win —- won
What is the past tense ?
I act in a film. Last week I ______ in a film.
I go to London. Last year I _______________ to London.
I ride an elephant. Last month I ___________ an elephant.
I learn English.
Last Saturday, we ___________ English with Mr Paul.
The monkey plays piano.
Last night, the monkey _________ piano.
She reads a book. Last Sunday she _____ a book.
He sleeps all day. Yesterday he _______ all day.
I watch the amazing Spiderman.
Last week I ______ the amazing Spiderman.
Put these verbs into the past tense, then complete the sentences:
want ———
take ———
decide ———
see ——–
buy ——–
think ——–
learn ——–
I —— to stay in bed this morning
She —– great photos with her new iPhoneX
We have —— to go to Thailand for Tet
Last night I —- a great film !
He —- food for Christmas from Harrods.
Tuesday ! I —— today was Wednesday
We —– about past simple in our lesson.
Pronunciation guide
In English, verb can be regular or irregular.
Regular verbs add -ed or -d in the past tense.
EXAMPLE:
I walk to work // I WALKED to work
I play guitar // I PLAYED guitar
She smiles on TV / She SMILED on TV
They dance in T-ara // They DANCED in T-ara
-ed past tense verbs pronunciation
Words have 3 end sounds:
‘t’
‘d
‘id’
If the word ends with:
ch / f / k / p / s / sh / thi – The sound is ‘t’ look = ‘lookt’
t /or / d/ – The sound is ‘id’ visit – ‘visitid’
Other sounds are ‘d’ bang = ‘bangd’
What is the correct pronunciation for these regular verbs ?
Look = Looked // laugh = laughed // end =
beg = / visit = / kiss =
brush = / breath = / love =
Read these sentences:
He cleared up the mess / He rolled up the newspaper / I have visited India
No Homework ! That sounded good / Teacher shouted, ‘No way !’
We all worked hard today / Tom talked so much /
The students played many games and laughed.
They have visited India
She has banged the drum !
Please Note: All photos are taken from Google Images or free photo sites, and are used for educational purposes only. No copyright infringement or offense is intended. If I have used your photo or image, and you wish me to remove it, just ask. This site is not monetized, I run it on my own dollar. Thank you.
A compilation of exercises to practise using the present perfect form
Present perfect
Subject + have/ has + past participle [verb 3]
She has been to New York / They have visited London
NEGATIVE:
I haven’t read The Great Gatsby
I have not seen My Sassy Girl
QUESTION:
Have you read Romeo and Juliet?
[Have / has + subject + verb 3 … ?]
Change the verb into the correct form:
I (read) your book several times. I have read your book several times 2. She has (wear) that skirt many times. [worn /wear / wore] 3. My family (visit) Brazil a few times. 4. I (eat) already. 5. Marta (finish) her homework. 6. You (break) the glass again. 7. They (pay) for everything. 8. It (never snow) like that. 9. I (meet) Anna once. 10. We (see) him before.
Change simple past into present perfect
Example – I started a band = I’ve started a band / I have started a band
1 I went to Ha Noi // 2 We explored a cave // 3 I ate cake // 4 We saw a famous building // 5 She buys many dresses and visited many friends
If (he/ she / they) had known it was so (expensive, noisy, boring …)
Emma, 19 Backpacker. Likes shopping, dancing, eating street food. She didn’t book ahead and was too tired and hot to walk around looking for a cheap hotel so she had to stay in a four-star hotel and spend nearly all of her money.
Japanese family. Like family activities, souvenirs and quiet nights. They stayed in the noisy backpacker area, with shouting and screaming and drunken karaoke all night.
Young men wanting a ‘Stag Night’ party, here to have a last hurrah ! They chose a quiet town in the Mekong Delta, but there was only one bar and it closed at 8.00 pm.
(a stag night is a wild party for a man before he gets married. There is normally a lot of drinking … and other activities)
Jewish students. They do not eat pork, or shell-fish. Want to see history and temples. Their guide keeps taking them to eat sea-food and pork restaurants because the guide only speaks Vietnamese and Chinese, and the students only speak Hebrew and English.
If these visitors came to your city or town, could you recommend places for them to visit ?
What are your suggestions?
Remember, Emma wants somewhere fun but cheap, the family want someone quiet but close to family attractions, the young men want lots of bars and clubs, while the Jewish students have strict dietary rules.
Now … some more exercises:
I was very hungry but too lazy to cook, so I went out to grab a bite to eat.
I thought I’d try the new restaurant.
I, obviously, ordered pho, (traditional Vietnamese food).
However, after I had eaten
I saw the chef !
If I hadknown the chef was so filthy, I wouldn’t have eaten there !
This is the 3rd conditional.
Something that happened in the past BUT you can’t change it now.
If I had known the film was so bad, I never would have gone !
If he had bought his wife flowers, she wouldn’t have been angry at him
If they had studied English, they would have passed the test.
Finally …
… a true story that my history teacher told me back in London.
My teacher was a somewhat dishevelled gentleman in his mid-30s. Let’s call him Mr Bowditch:
Mr Bowditch, history teacher at an east London school
Mr Bowditch lived in a bedsit, which is basically renting one room in a large house and sharing the kitchen and bathroom with other tenants. His room was not particularly comfortable:
One night, Mr Bowditch was in his room and began to feel a little hungry. He wanted some chocolate so decided to go to the off-license and buy some sweets (an off-licence is a shop that sells basic food and sweets but also alcohol and cigarettes. It used to be open until 11.00pm when most shops would close around 6.00 pm). He decided to buy, among other items, some ‘Fry’s Turkish Delight’ a sort of jelly covered in chocolate:
OK, so far so good. However, Mr Bowditch lived in a rather bad part of London, it wasn’t always safe to walk alone at night. Unfortunately, on the way home, Mr Bowditch meet the following young men:
They called out to Mr Bowditch and stopped him walking. They demanded:
Mr Bowditch had none, as he had just spent his money on sweets (candy). They didn’t believe him and began to search him. He showed them:
That was all he had … a few pounds, about 100 000 VND. The men became very angry and aggressive. Suddenly, they heard a police car siren. The men tried to drag Mr Bowditch into the tunnel, away from the road but he is very tall and stopped them. As the police car got closer, the men ran away. Mr Bowditch has never eaten ‘Fry’s Turkish Delight’ again.
There are several instances of the third conditional in the above story.
If Mr Bowditch had bought sweets on his way home, he wouldn’t have gone out later and been mugged (mugged means being robbed, often with violence or the threat of violence).
If Mr Bowditch had gone to a different shop, he wouldn’t have meet the muggers.
If the police car hadn’t been passing, Mr Bowditch might have been seriously hurt.
If Mr Bowditch hadn’t been so tall, he would have been dragged into the tunnel and maybe beaten or worse.
The structure: the first clause starts with ‘If’ then using a comma before completing the sentence. The first verb can be positive or negative (in the examples, I use ‘had’ and ‘hadn’t’).
We use this to talk about things that DIDN’T happen.
Why the long face ? Someone looks miserable or unhappy.
She can talk the hind legs off a donkey ! Talking non-stop !
The tip of the iceberg.
Piece of cake No problem, easy, no trouble
Same thing, day in, day out everyday is exactly the same, very boring.
On the lookout looking for something
Cooking the books cheating with the company accounts. Writing false information.
A bright spark someone who is very clever
You’re pulling my leg ! joking but pretending to be serious.
The boot’s on the other foot the situation has changed.
You can’t miss it you will certainly recognise it when you see it, when you are there.
Big time ! (US modern popular culture) Absolutely, totally, very, very much
Brass monkeys it’s extremely, painfully cold
Once in a blue moon something that happens extremely rarely
Bob’s your uncle there you are ! No problem, all fixed ! (UK slang)
Now … your turn
Practice using these saying in everyday conversations … answers, as per usual, at the end of the blog.
1) I love the beach. but I rarely go, just ……………………………….
2) If you’re late for class again, the teacher will be furious …….
3) You look so sad ……………………… ?
4) I’m freezing ! It’s ……………………. in here
5) Seriously ? You can marry three wives in UK ? No, you’re ……..
6) Oh, my job is so tedious, …………………………
7) She wouldn’t shut up ! She ….
8) It’s no problem; I’ll clean your laptop, remove the virsus and Trojans and ………
9) I used to earn more than my wife but she got a big promotion, so now …………. She earns more than me !
10) I need a new pair of shoes. I’m ………………… for some high quality Italian leather.
11) The accountant was sacked. He was ……… but that was not all ! That’s just the …………………… He was also stealing computers and selling them.
12) This lesson was a ………………… for me because I’m such a ……………….
13) I didn’t use ‘you can’t miss it.’ Write your own sentence.
Answers
1) once in a blue moon
2) big time
3) why the long face ?
4) brass monkeys
5) pulling my leg
6) Same thing, day in, day out
7) can/could talk the hind legs off a donkey.
8) Bob’s your uncle
9) the boot’s on the other foot.
10) on the lookout
11) cooking the books / tip of the iceberg
12) piece of cake / bright spark
Well, if you’re such a bright spark, write you own sentences and test your partner.
Please Note: All photos are taken from Google Images or free photo sites, and are used for educational purposes only. No copyright infringement or offense is intended. If I have used your photo or image, and you wish me to remove it, just ask. This site is not monetized, I run it on my own dollar. Thank you.
Various exercises for you to practise grammar, both past simple and past continuous. Answer follow the photos.
Past Tense exercises
Past simple: most common way of talking about the past.
Regular verbs just add –ed e.g. walk = walked / look = looked / play = played
Past continuous: was / were + verbing e.g. I was playing / We were looking
Irregular verbs not used in past continuous e.g. we were seeing a film OR we saw a film NOT we were sawing a film.
Present perfect– talk about an action that happened in the past
subj + have/has + verb3 (past participle).
Past perfect – talking about two actions, both in the past, one before the other
e.g. I had listened to the CD before I saw the band play live.
Subj + had + verb3
The verb ‘to be’
I am / I was // you are / you were // he, she, it is / was // they, we are / were
Past tense / Shakespeare exercise
Change these lines into the past:
1 In Act One, Romeo ….. (is) in love with _________
2 Benvolio ……… (try – past continuous) to stop the fight.
3 The Prince ………. (demand – past perfect) to see Capulet before seeing Montague.
4 Romeo, Mercutio & Benvolio ……. (are) in the street talking.
5 The two families …… …. (be, present continuous) been fighting for years.
6 Romeo ….. (ask) the Nurse who Juliet is.
7 Mercutio & Benvolio …… (do, not) know Romeo was in love with Juliet.
8 The famous ‘balcony’ scene … (take) place in Act 2.
9 The Friar ……. ……. (go, past perfect) out collecting flowers.
10 At the end of Act 2, Romeo and Juliet …… (are) married.
ANSWERS
1) was (Rosaline) 2) was trying 3) had demanded 4) were 5) have been 6) asked 7) did not (didn’t) 8) took 9) had gone 10) were
Past tense exercise
Change the verb form – can be:
past simple (think about regular & irregular verbs)
past continuous (verb + ing)
present perfect (subject + have/has + verb3)
past perfect (subject + had + verb3)
It is …. a hot, Sai Gon night. The wind blow …….. up from the river, but the humidity drive ….. me crazy. Sweat pour ……… down my back.
I were walk …………. by the Old Town, lanterns were light ……. and sway ….. in the breeze. I … visit …….. an old friend before I decide ………. to take this long, steamy walk. I …. live ……….. here over two years, but everyday, I am almost
kill ……. by crazy motorbikes. I need …. .. a coffee and see …… a cafe over the road. As I were cross ……………….. the street, a motorbike race …….. towards me. If I ……. jump ……… aside, he would …present perfect…. hit …. me. But that were …… his idea.
He turn ….. around and pull …… out a gun, aim …… and fire ……… . I ……. ……….(be) present perfectshot at more times than I care to remember, I know …….. the score; duck and run. I run …… .I ………did, (negative) have time to think. I can … think later – if I am still alive. I make …. it into the coffee shop, and were look ……. out the window across the street.
The shooter were dress …… all in black and keep …… his helmet on. He were walk …………. this way. Quickly, I look ……. around. Were there another exit ? Can …. I escape by a back door ? Yes ! I ……. be (past perfect) ……here…before. I remember ………. a fire exit on the first floor. I leap …… for the stairs, just as the shooter were about to open the door.
Answers: was / blew / drove / poured // was walking / lit / swayed / visitid / decided / lived // killed / needed / saw / was crossing / raced / jumped / have hit / was // turned / pulled / aimed / fired / I have been shot at / knew / ran / didn’t / could / was / made / looked // was dressed / kept / was walking / looked / was / Could / had been / remembered / lept
Here are 7 verbs in the PRESENT. Choose the correct verb AND use it in the correct tense.
teach / live / go / see / drink / am / have
Harry (1) …….. drinking tea yesterday, when he (2) ……. an idea. I haven’t (3) …….. my neighbours how to drink tea. I am sure they will be happy. They have not (4) …… to the UK yet. I have (5) …. in many cities in England. Now I am in Viet Nam. I have (6) …. many wonderful sights, but I have never (7) …… a cup of good, English tea.
Answers: 1) was 2) had 3) taught 4) been 5) lived 6) seen 7) drunk
Put the present tense verbs into past continuous
EXAMPLE Linh drinks tea – Linh was drinking tea
1 Tina watches TV
2 Sam shouts, ‘Oh, no!’
3 My father plays football
4 Bella designs a beautiful dress
5 The cat sings karaoke all night long !
6 Paul listens to The Beatles
7 Anna buys an Apple.
Answers: 1) was watching 2) was shouting 3) was playing 4) was designing 5) was singing 6) was listening 7) was buying
75 % of verbs are REGULAR – just add -ed to form past tense
Last night he listened to music and played computer games
irregular verbs – no rules.
Present – Past / Present – Past / Present – Past
I am – I was / begin – began / have – had
eat – ate / go – went / drive – drove
tell – told / hear – heard / catch – caught
buy – bought / write- wrote / see – saw
Listening: How many past tense verbs ?
Yesterday, I went to visit my friend. We played badminton then walked in the park.
After, we ate lunch and drank beer. Later, I bought coffee and wrote some emails.
Corrections: Write in the past tense
I (am) born in London and (arrive) in Viet Nam in 2015. I (work) as teacher in District 1 and 3 but I (want) to work near my home. Last week, my friend (have) a party. She (dance) all night and I (hear) her singing. In the morning, she (catch) a plane and (go) to Thailand.
Thay Paul's Notes 